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The BEGINNER 
in P O ULT ILY 

G 5 VALE NT I N E 



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THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

NEW YORK ■ BOSTON ■ CHICAGO 
DALLAS • SAN FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN & CO., Limited 

LONDON - BOMBAY • CALCUTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. 

TORONTO 



THE 
BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



THE ZEST AND THE PROFIT 
IN POULTRY GROWING 



"BY 
C. S. VALENTINE 



Nefo f|oTk 

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

1912 

All rights reserved 












Copyright, 1912, 
By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY. 



Set up and electrotyped. Published September, 1912. 



Nottaooti ^resa 

J. S. dishing Co. — Berwick & Smith Co. 

Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



A/ 

CCI.A320449 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER 

I. 

II. 

III. 

IV. 

V. 
VI. 

VII. 

VIII. 

IX. 

X. 

XI. 

XII. 

XIII. 

XIV. 

XV. 

XVI. 

XVII. 

XVIII. 

XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 

XXIII. 



What makes a Poultryman? 

Making the Real Start 

Choosing among the Breeds 

Hatching and Brooding with the Mother 

Hen 

Beginning Artificial Incubation 

Handling and Feeding the Young from Ma 

chines 

Studying Feeding Values . 

A Study of Juicy Feeds . ; . . 

How to prevent Disease .... 

Molds, Smuts, and Bacteria 

Medicines, Disinfectants, and Insecticides 

Methods of circumventing Vermin . 

Types of Modern Housing .... 

Home-Made Conveniences .... 

The Ideal Bird 

Line Breeding and Mendel's Law 
Records for Future Study 

Profit and Loss 

Cost of Producing Eggs, Chicks, and Fowls 
Studying Eggs ....... 

The Field of the American Standard of Per 

fection, and the Association 

Poultry Schools ...... 

Practical Laying Contests 
v 



PAGE 

I 

9 

20 

33 
5i 

63 
75 
92 

io 3 
113 

124 

131 

147 
166 
177 
186 
199 
211 
222 
244 

254 
267 
287 



VI 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER 

XXIV. Quality in Wire Fencing 

XXV. Ducks and Geese .... 

XXVI. The National Bird .... 

XXVII. Guinea Fowl and Quail . 

XXVIII. Drawing and Dismembering Poultry 

XXIX. Advertising Fancy Stock 

XXX. Shipping to New York 

XXXI. Feathers and the Molt . 

XXXII. The Question of Supplies 

XXXIII. Efficiency the Key to Success 

XXXIV. The Beginner's Foes and his Friends 

Glossary of Breeder's Special Terms . 
Acting Heads of State Agricultural Colleges 
Index 



PAGE 

3°3 
312 

33i 

339 
355 
364 
33i 
393 
402 
411 
422 

43i 
435 
439 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



New Jersey Poultry Building Foundation 

Sympathy ...... 

Strength ...... 

Social Kinship, shown by Pride 

The Peach Orchard Poultry Yard . 

One might buy Some New-hatched Chicks 

Lice-killing Machine . . . 

Connecticut Field Meeting 

Picturesque New Jersey Poultry House . 

Attractive Open-front Colony House 

Prize Dorking Male .... 

White Wyandotte Fowls. Typical of American Ideas 
Cornell Feed Hopper . . . 
Dark Cornish Fowls .... 

Columbian Wyandottes .... 

Buff Fowl Showing Mottling . 

Winter Chicks ..... 

Rose-comb Brown Leghorn Chicks 

The Easiest Egg Tester 

Improved Water Fount .... 

Cornell Brooder House, New Jersey Station 
Weak White Leghorn Chicks, Cornell 
Hatching Test Report Chart. Cornell 
Incubator Cellar, West Virginia Station . 
Ostriches Five Days Old . ... 

Cornell Gasoline Brooder 

Standard Poultry Feeds .... 

Sprouting Oats ; Beet Pulp ; Restaurant Waste 
Minnesota Flax ..... 

Peanut Plant ...... 

vii 



Frontispiece 

PAGE 

3 
5 
6 

9 
ii 

13 
15 
17 

21 

24 

25 
26 
28 

31 

32 

36 

39 
47 
49 
53 
55 
57 
59 
67 

7i 
76 

77 
83 



Vlll 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



Sprouted Oats, Four Inches High 

Millets .... 

Pearl Millet . 

Cornell Water Fount 

Automatic Grain Feeder 

Diseased Gizzard . 

The Best Medicine Chest 

" Inspiration is Perspiration " 

Apple Tree injured by Meadow Mice 

Great Horned Owl . 

Sharp-shinned Hawk 

Alfalfa mined by Mice . 

Carson Meadow Mice 

Adapted Tohnan House 

Roost Platform and Nests 

Rear View, West Virginia House . 

Skeleton of Clark House, New Jersey Station 

New Jersey Roof Chart . . . 

Solid Concrete Foundation 

Cornell Rat-proof Feed Hopper 

Nests in Vertical Series .... 

Soap-box Feed Hopper .... 

Swinging Jail for Sitters 

Piano-box Large House .... 

Head of Rose-combed Leghorn Male 

White Leghorn Female, Nearly Ideal 

Reshaping the Wyandotte, through Breeding 

Indian Runner, " The White Queen " 

Campine Hen, Near-perfection in Type . 

How Not to do It . 

Leghorns, Weak and Strong 

Home-Made Trap Nest Series 

A Year's Feed for One Hen 

Four Vital Points . 

-The Rosy Side" . 

Eastern Cotton Tail Rabbit 

Variations in Retail Prices of Eggs 

Variations in Cost and Weisrht of Eccs 



and J 



udsrins 



97 

99 
101 
105 
107 
1 10 
129 

134 
136 

137 
141 

143 
144 

!5i 
T 53 
154 
160 
162 
164 
168 
169 
170 
171 

175 

178 
181 
183 
184 
1S9 
199 
201 
204 
209 
212 

2T4 
217 
219 
225 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 



IX 



Home-Made Fireless Brooder 

One Month's Egg Product .... 

Three Systems of Yarding .... 

Farm Hopper Feeding and Watering Devices 
Eggs, Comparative Size, Hen and Pullet 
Feathers Variously Marked .... 

White Indian Runner Ducks . 

White Laced Red Cornish Cock 

Prize Winning Black Minorca, " Perfection " . 

New Jersey's First Poultry Class 

Cornell Poultry Class ..... 

Concrete Floor Construction .... 

Sicilian Buttercups ..... 

New Jersey Long Laying House 
Pen Silver Wyandottes bred Abroad 
Partridge Rocks in Storrs Contest . 
Competition Pen of White Wyandottes . 
International Competition Pen Silver Wyandottes 
Competition Laying House, Storrs . 
International Competition Plant 
Black Orpington Competition Pen, Missouri . 
Wire Netting rusted in Roll .... 

Barley growing in Frame .... 

Wire Netting and Drinking Fount . 
Home-Made Coop ...... 

Silo for Beets ....... 

Walton Indian Runners ..... 

Efficient Duck Houses ..... 

New York Winning Embden Geese 

Young Embden Geese on Pond 

White China Geese ..... 

White Holland Turkeys grown in Texas 

White Guinea Fowl 

Quail Chicks feeding from Hand 
Breeding Quail at Connecticut Agricultural College 
Quail Two Months Old . . . . . 
Cooper Chicken Hawk ..... 
Drawing and Dismembering a Fowl 



facing 



PAGE 

226 

228 
233 
239 
247 
255 
258 

260 
264 

268 
273 
279 
281 
283 
288 

291 
292 

295 
298 
300 
301 

3°5 
3°5 
308 
310 
3H 
315 
319 
322 

324 
327 
335 
34o 
345 
347 
35° 
353 
358 



LIST 01 ILLUSTRATIONS 



Dismembering Cuts and Egg Duct of Female 

The A. L. Clark Poultry House 

Fancy Stock acquiring Hardiness 

Cornell Strong Leghorn Chicks 

An Effective Wind Break 

Well Fledged Leghorn Chick 

Mercantile Exchange 

Cold Storage Chicken 

Freshly-killed Chicken . 

A Starting Feather 

Ostriches Five Months Old 

Specimens of Down Enlarged 

Laced Feathers of Silver Wyandotte 

Automatic Feeder . 

Patented Feed Trough . 

" Stoneburn " Trap Nest 

Nitrogen Gatherers 

Nodules of Velvet Bean . 

Boys 1 Corn Exhibit 

Wire Netting Curing Cribs 

Detail of Pen Construction 

Plucking the Ostrich 

Social Joys 



361 

365 
368 

373 
377 
382 

385 
3&7 
39 l 
395 
396 

399 
401 
404 
406 
408 
412 
4'4 
4i7 
419 
420 

4^3 
429 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



THE BEGINNER IN 
POULTRY 



WHAT MAKES A POULTRYMAN? 

Effect of Business on Character — Dealing with Sen- 
tient Beings — Sympathy a Necessary Factor — The 
Rights of Animals — Justice Tends to Profit — A Pro- 
tector — " Good Luck " — Hen Reasons 

At the risk of seeming, for the time being, unpracti- 
cal, I wish to discuss this question from the standpoint 
of the fowls themselves. I believe this to be fundamen- 
tally practical. 

It is not merely the keeping or even the breeding of 
many fowls through a series of years that makes a real 
poultryman ; efficient, systematic, successful. Students 
of men have made and reiterated the statement that 
horticulturists, as a body, are the finest group of men on 
earth. This is the impression almost sure to be gained 
by close observation of gatherings of men of this pro- 
fession, in conference or convention. But, why should 
horticulture be looked upon as a profession more than 
poultry breeding is looked upon as a profession ? Why 
should the actual practice of these "professions," or, if 
you prefer it, " trades," differ in its effect on the men 
who follow them ? Or, if you are not willing to allow 

Photographs not otherwise credited, or obviously from the Experiment 
Stations, are by the Author. 

B I 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

that this is the case, what is the difference of tempera- 
ment or of feeling which draws a man to the one or the 
other? And why should the one elevate the character 
of the men who follow it, while the other (as is asserted) 
tends to do just the reverse ? 

Both these occupations lead man closer to Nature. 
But, in the one, he handles and creates new forms with 
living things which have not feeling or response ; in the 
other, he controls — as far as a human being may — 
living things which are sentient, and which have what 
we may term "personalities " which respond to him, and 
which communicate with him to a considerable degree. 
This, it seems to me, is the fundamental difference, and 
this difference is what makes the difference in the effect 
upon man himself. This is because, if a man does not 
deal out justice and kindness to sentient things, he 
becomes, in the very nature of things, the less a JiigJier 
being. This morning, a ten-year-old lad passed my door, 
angrily whipping an old horse lagging in the spell of 
unprecedented heat ; yesterday, a farmer's daughter 
soused a too-persistent sitting hen in water till the bird 
was nearly drowned, to "break" her of the natural im- 
pulse. These common occurrences are unjust, and, be- 
cause unjust, they are callousing. And there are scores of 
ways in which man may, and does, make callous and bru- 
talize himself, in dealing with the living things subject 
to his will. This does not affect these animals alone, for 
calluses grow and fester, and the man who is cruel to his 
stock becomes insensibly cruel to his wife and children. 

I have spoken at the outset of sympathy as a necessary 
factor in the successful handling of sentient things. 
This sympathy will not be shown, in the majority of 



WHAT MAKES A POULTRYMAN? 



instances, unless the person concerned has been educated 
to it ; first by teaching and example, then through "train- 
ing, and eventually through observation and study of the 
animals. For 
real sympathy is 
not merely a 
chance matter of 
tender-hearted- 
ness ; it is funda- 
mentally a matter 
of seeing condi- 
tions, at least in 
part, from the 
point of view of 
the other being. 
One who is to 
deal with living, 
sentient crea- 
tures, needs, 
then, to study 
these creatures as 
creatures of feel- 
ings and of rights. 
He needs to ob- 
serve their ways 
of doing things 
when they are 
free to do as they 
will ; their ways 

as a group or class, and also as individualities — separate 
members of the group. Indeed, one who goes much 
among any groups of animals, with eyes at all open, can- 




Sympathy — A Necessary Factor 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



not but observe these many things. But, to delve into 
the reasons for certain phases of group behavior and 
also for certain individual habits will render them far 
more interesting and attractive. The former can often 
be traced ; the latter far less often. 

Observation of the habits of groups and of individuals 
leads directly to more and more interest ; therefore to 
increased sympathy, and to a sense of the rights of even 

the lower animals. 
Not until we have 
studied rather deeply 
into the reasons for 
common behavior and 
for exceptional be- 
havior in animals sub- 
ject to us are we fitted, 
in any real sense, to 
become complete mas- 
ters of their fate. For 
masters of the beings 
within their posses- 
sion, men, women, and 
children always are, as 
long as these beings 
are weaker than they, 
or believe themselves 
to be weaker. The 
strength of man thus 
lies in the weakness or the submission of that which he com 
mands or controls. It may be weakness of character, or of 
will, or it may be weakness only physical (although phys- 
ical weakness leads logically to the other weaknesses). 




Strength 



WHAT MAKES A POULTRYMAN? 5 

The beings under the dominion of man must, then, 
appeal to him, through their weakness, to his sympathy 
and his sense of justice. The sympathy of one man 
will be aroused by the thought of a bird as a pet, which 
his feelings will not allow him to kill. The sympathies 
of another will be far more practically shown in the 
kind care and regular attention to their needs which he 
apportions to the creatures under him. That this is pre- 
cisely what tends to make them most profitable is cause 
for thanksgiving; were it not the case, life might be one 
long torture to the subject animals. While many are 
too kindly natured to feel justified to raise animals for 
the express purpose of killing for profit, yet the dominion 
of man is over the lower animals, and the greater pain 
which accrues to them through his handling comes from 
his neglect of their daily needs and hourly comfort, 
rather than in death ; since they do not usually antici- 
pate death and it can be made painless by the use of 
the right methods. We need to assure and reassure 
ourselves that it is especially hunger and fear and pain 
from which we are in duty bound to defend the lower 
creatures, to whom we are as gods. Maeterlinck appre- 
hends and expresses this attitude of the creatures, when 
he makes the dog in the play, " The Bluebird," address 
the man as " My little god." 

As the sympathy and the sense of a certain social 
kinship is aroused in the dominator, man, toward his 
underlings, he grows into the attitude of a protector for 
justice's sake, rather than merely for profit's sake. It 
is at this point that every method of manipulation of 
the flocks turns into "good luck" in his hands. His 
chicks grow rapidly and evenly; his hens sing joyful 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



lays for his ears and deposit profitable " lays " in the 
nests which he carefully and sensibly provides. It is a 
simple matter, this of providing a nest just to the hen's 
taste; so simple that any one ought to be able to do it 




Social Kinship shown by Pride. This, with Sympathy and Strength common 
to Man and His Birds 

exactly right, it would seem. Scores of unsympathetic 
"practical " people may tell you it is all bosh to consider 
the whims of the fowls in matters of so little moment 
as this. The hen is due to lay anyhow, they will argue, 
and why should any sensible, practical person go to the 
trouble of doing things in any special way, just to please 
the whim of a stupid hen ? 

But, in the first place, and answer enough, the hen is 
not " stupid." There is nearly always a well-defined 



WHAT MAKES A POULTRYMAN? 7 

(hen) reason for the special course which she desires to 
follow. Because it is a part of her nature to steal aside 
and lay a nestful of eggs for the incubation of her pro- 
spective brood, she likes a rather dark and quiet stow- 
away nest, even when housed under artificial conditions, 
and she likes it better and better as it becomes fuller 
and fuller of eggs. Because of this innate feeling, she 
will choose a nest containing a nest egg before one 
which is empty, other things being equal. 

But, suppose that it is not a matter of nest eggs. 
Suppose that there is a full tier of nests made comfort- 
able and inviting, each with its dummy egg, and placed 
just where you want her to lay; suppose that she persists, 
as one hen, though there may be a dozen or more of her, 
in laying in another, less desirable, nest, or even on the 
floor in the corner ? The average handler will be sure 
to " Drat her ! " as a silly, stupid, and, above all, obsti- 
nate good-for-nothing, when all the time the probable 
reason — and a perfectly logical one — for the bird's 
seemingly erratic action is that the man has omitted to 
provide a suitable alighting board in front of the nests. 
In her efforts to fly full tilt directly into the nest from 
the floor, her outspread wings strike its sides, and, fail- 
ing to double herself up into it, as she drops back, she 
goes to the floor. A dozen failures bruise and discourage 
her. After watching her till she becomes discouraged, and 
obstinate in depositing her egg in the floor litter, shall we 
not rather say : a stupid, unseeing man who has not 
tried. to learn the needs or the ways of the hen, but has 
insisted on her doing things in his way when circum- 
stances wJiicJi lie has provided made it impossible, or at 
least very difficult, for her to meet his wishes ? 



II 

MAKING THE REAL START 

Waiting on the Hens — Imprisonment for Life — Buying 
Sitters — Imperiling Success — Prices of Hens — Cost 
of Chicks — Quick Product from Hens — Maturity of 
Pullets — Large Investments Unsafe — Who Furnish 
the Failures ? 

Now we strike a puzzle : how are you going to start ? 
In a large, or a small way ? With machines, or hens ? 
Or with baby chicks, made ready for you by some one 
who has experience ? I cannot decide this for you, al- 
together, because so much depends on what you are 
going to put into the proposition, aside from the money 
investment. 

One might begin with half a dozen hens, a dry- 
goods box for a house, and with a cracker box or two 
for nests. One might be very intensive, and keep these 
hens shut within their box all the time. That would 
mean that every morsel of food and water and litter 
which they receive must be supplied them, and all the 
waste incident to the life of the hen must be removed 
carefully and promptly by you, if you are to handle 
them yourself. Are you ready for the task ? And 
what if you eventually increase to several hundred 
fowls ? Will you then be willing to become such a 
slave to your expected money-makers ? Again, are you 
willing to imprison for life these sociable helpers of 
yours ? If so, any poultry supply house can furnish 
you a book which will tell you, in detail, almost every 
move you must make in thus handling the birds. There 

9 



10 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

is even a school — a private concern — where all these 
points are taught. 

If you are not willing to take on so imperative a serv- 
ice, you will provide a good, green range for the birds, 
let them wait on themselves just as much as may be 
during all open weather, feed them each a handful of 
grain once a day, with a few meat scraps from the 
table or a little milk instead of the scraps, if this is 
handier. They will begin to lay for you in April if 
you have procured them in March (and this is about as 
early as you can well begin, on this plan) at the north. 
But, it will be several weeks before you will have any 
hens ready to hatch for you, so that you can do no early 
hatching unless you can buy some sitters. This sounds 
feasible ; but there will be the difficulty of moving them 
to their new quarters, and the possibly greater difficulty 
of finding any for sale at all. For, at this special sea- 
son, all who make any specialty of poultry are quite 
likely to need all the broody hens for their own work ; 
and this, even though they use several hatching ma- 
chines. You will hardly find it good business to buy 
incubators while you have few layers and little experi- 
ence, especially as you might not be able to procure 
eggs in sufficiently large numbers. Besides, when eggs 
are not plentiful, they are likely to be held too long for 
best hatching. The Beginner, of all workers with 
poultry, needs good tools and good eggs ; else, he can- 
not tell whether any trouble which arises is due to his 
own errors, or to the eggs, or to a poor machine. 

I wonder whether you would not rather buy some 
new hatched chicks outright, from some one who is 
known to have good ones, and begin with them ? You 



MAKING THE REAL START n 

might procure a good brooder, or, if you thought it 
better to go to no further expense, this first spring, you 
could raise them in cracker boxes or fireless brooders. 
That means that you will keep them in the dwelling at 




One might Buy Some New-hatched Chicks 

night, if you begin early in the season ; but, you can 
put them out in a sheltered place whenever it is sunny. 
It won't do to let the wind blow on them much, but 
they would rather be warmed by the sun, when it shines 
out warmly, than by any indoor heat that could be 
furnished. 

Will you get fifty to start with ? Or twenty-five at 
first, and perhaps fifty more three weeks later? There 
is a great advantage in buying chicks in this way, just 
the number you can handle comfortably, and just when 
you want them. All in a bunch are of the same age 
and have an equal show, as far as it can be given them. 
There will be none older and much stronger to crowd 
and trample the young ones, as is almost sure to be the 
case if the chicks come along eight or ten at a time, and 
are bunched in one flock after a few weeks. If you 
want to try two or more lots the first year, don't make 
the mistake of letting them run together. This is about 



12 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

the worst blunder a Beginner can make. It is one that 
probably eighty out of a hundred do make, for lack of 
forethought. Perhaps fifteen more of the hundred do 
it in spite of warning, because it is so much easier, and 
because they cannot apprehend the vital importance of 
keeping the different ages separate. The result is that 
very few really first-class chicks are raised, because the 
majority of learners have thus imperiled their own suc- 
cess at the outset. And this error affects them at every 
stage of the work from this period of early chickhood on. 

If it were not for just one thing, I might advise you 
to buy two or three mother hens with their broods, for 
the start. But, unfortunately, nearly all sitting hens 
have lice. And when the chicks have parasites to fight, 
from the first, you have a slender chance to raise any 
really good ones. The strongest may keep themselves 
pretty free by vigorous use of the dust bath which they 
find in any plot of soft, dry earth. But they cannot 
make good headway against those on top of the head, 
which are so often found when they are taken from 
the nest for cooping. You, too, must fight these lice 
all the time. Don't you see that the real question, all 
along the line, is how far you can be trusted? 

Have you noticed how almost universally those who 
ask information ask for the good points of fowl, or ma- 
chine, or whatever may be the subject of inquiry ? 
Yesterday, I saw in horticultural print, a query as to 
the faults of a certain popular peach. Every one who 
writes about this peach praises its good points. The 
inquiry brought out the fact that it had several very bad 
points, one of them being that it succeeded only in a 
few localities. Its praise, then, was utterly misleading 



MAKING THE REAL START 



13 



to most readers, unless the bad points were mentioned 
at the same time. With this thought in mind, I 
am trying to show the pitfalls that go with each 
method of beginning with poultry raising. There is a 
difficulty with brooder chicks which the average Beginner 
will not be expecting, and which may send him stum- 




" You, too, must Fight These Lice.'' Lice-killing Machine. Introduce Birds 
and Lice Powder, and Rotate 

bling beyond recovery of his balance. If not bought 
from some one known to have good, free-range, healthy, 
vigorous stock, these machine-hatched chicks are quite 
liable to develop "white diarrhoea," the most dreaded 
scourge of the incubator chick. This is said to be in- 
cipient even in the egg before it is incubated, in some 
cases. In case this should occur, you might lose every 
one before they were three weeks old. 



14 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

The production of day-old chicks has become tre- 
mendous, and you who are new to the work are almost 
sure to argue that in buying chicks you know exactly 
what you are to get, while with eggs you buy only a 
"chance." It is quite true that baby chicks can be 
shipped safely for some hundreds of miles. But, as 
long as white diarrhoea has the upper hand, they may 
be looked upon as pretty much of a gamble, if incuba- 
tor-hatched. One firm said, in a letter in March, 191 1, 
"We expect to sell 50,000 this coming season" ; another 
returned $4000 received for orders which it could not 
fill. One seller says, concerning this method of getting 
stock: " The buyer receives his chicks and sees what he 
gets, and does not have to watch the old hen and can- 
not come back on the seller and say eggs were infertile. 
In this one way alone the chicks business is best." As 
a discerning Beginner, however, you may notice that 
here is no argument whatever for you ; that is, no argu- 
ment for the actual value of the chicks. If they die 
after receipt, — well, you are a Beginner. Of course, it 
is all your fault, and you " cannot come back at the 
seller!" 

On the whole, though it is easiest, and requires less 
initial investment, possibly, to buy chicks, it may be 
safest and cheapest for you, in the end, to start with the 
six hens, or ten, if you prefer. You may not get chicks 
so early, by this method, nor can you have them all of 
the same age, unless you can buy additional sitters and 
set them all at once. But I do not know but you will be 
more certain of reaching the autumn with a decent flock 
of pullets to repay you for your trouble and expense. 
Ten common hens will cost you $7.50 (if you are very 



j 6 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

lucky) to $10. But, if you prefer to begin with fair, 
pure-bred birds of the breed which you think you will 
like best, you may get the six layers for $g, possibly, 
and four common hens for sitters for $4 more. But 
prices now tend to run higher than this for even 
ordinary pure stock, especially in the spring, when most 
of the surplus has been sold and the supply is likely to 
be short of the call. 

The two lots of chicks which you considered buying 
would have cost you anywhere from $7.50 up according 
to quality and your location. In favorable places, pos- 
sibly even a little less ; I see them advertised, at times, 
at eight cents apiece, but this is rare. The specially 
good point about starting with the hens is that with 
six good ones you can count on about thirty-five eggs a 
week for a short time, and with ten hens, if you de- 
velop skill in feeding, you may get fifty or sixty eggs 
a week for a short time in spring. Thirty-five eggs 
a week would supply five sitters with work every eleven 
days, if you wished to use them all that way. It is 
not wise to save them up much longer than this. If 
you can get the sitters for them, you will be lucky, 
for this brings your lots of chicks only eleven days 
apart in age. You can sell the hens for nearly what 
they cost, when the chicks leave them, and your own 
layers will be yielding eggs right along more or less 
until the middle of September,, perhaps, giving you 
eggs to sell. You may get enough for the table till 
well into October ; but November and possibly Decem- 
ber will be months of all outgo and no income, unless 
your pullets are early enough to begin with October. 
A good pullet commonly takes six or seven months to 



IS THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

develop, so that, if not hatched till May, you cannot 
depend on them to give much yield of eggs before 
November or December. 

I have purposely taken you through this maze of 
figures and possibilities, in order that you may see how 
many chances there are for you to make irreparable 
errors during the first season, and how necessary it is 
for you to study the chicks, the chances, the pitfalls, 
etc. It is almost equal to Greek, but far more interest- 
ing and profitable, provided only that you can be de- 
pended on. 

The matter of beginning in a large way with incuba- 
tors, which demand eggs in lots of fifty and upward, 
I think best not to consider favorably at all. The chief 
reason is that, if you are a genuine Beginner, you have 
not been tested, and, until this is at least partially done, 
it is decidedly better not to incur large risks. Opera- 
tions on incubator scale, continued throughout the 
spring and earlier summer seasons, demand a consider- 
able investment; as there must be brooders, weaning 
coops, feed for large numbers, and housing for the 
winter stock. All of this investment must be made 
within the first seven months. The chances are great 
that, if you should begin in this way, you would meet 
with so much discouragement and loss that your ma- 
chines, coops, etc., would be for sale within a year or 
two. You could not get half price for them even 
though "little used," as there is very little call for 
second-hand poultry supplies ; all but Beginners acraze 
over poultry know better than to buy them. And most 
Beginners will prefer to start on a smaller, safer basis. 
Besides, everybody is suspicious of the enthusiast who 



MAKING THE REAL START 



J 9 



quits too soon, and this alone will " queer " the sale of 
his appliances. 

Do not be deluded, therefore, into getting a large 
lot of expensive buildings and supplies at the outset, 
before you know the real necessities of the work, or 
what you really want. The Beginners who fall into this 
error furnish most of the class known as " The Failures." 



Ill 

CHOOSING AMONG THE BREEDS 

Breed and Class — Study Classes First — Making and 
Molding Breeds — The Important Classes — Which 
Standpoint ? — Outstanding Breeds — The Champion 
Laying Breed — Size of Eggs 

Strictly speaking, shape is the determining feature 
of a breed. But among poultrymen, the word " breed " 
is so often carelessly applied to varieties, that it is nec- 
essary to know this habit of theirs in order to make sure 
of understanding them always. The Standard of Per- 
fection is always changing, partly because new varieties 
or new breeds are admitted from time to time, and partly 
because it is revised once in five years. For this reason, 
it is scarcely wise, in a book like the present one, whose 
life may cover many years, to state definitely the special 
requirements of the Standard, or to refer to special con- 
tents except in a general way. Thus, I may say that 
the Standard of Perfection, at the time of this writing, 
contains about 140 variety descriptions. Perhaps the 
strict meaning of the word " breed " would seem different 
to different people. Some would say that there are 
something above fifty real breeds ; others would contend 
that there are more. 

The term " Class," as applied to group units of similar 
kind, is rather an arbitrary word. But its key point is 
that the units which compose it, of whatever name they 
may be, have common characteristics. It would be a 
puzzle of puzzles, indeed, for a Beginner to try to select 

20 



22 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

from the many breeds and varieties, if jumbled together, 
just the one variety which would best suit his own aims 
and his own personal likings as welL He may be ner- 
vous, and thus inclined to abhor nervous fowls ; he may be 
just snappy enough to abhor a slow and apparently stupid 
variety, etc. How can one select from such a large 
number, with any degree of certainty of getting just 
what he wants ? 

Fortunately, the grouping of breeds into Classes is a 
great help just here. And I regard the Class to which 
a bird belongs as the one important thing for a Beginner 
to study first. Under each Class, he will find placed the 
birds which are nearest alike in certain general charac- 
teristics. If those characteristics appeal to him, he 
needs to study more definitely only the breeds under 
this class, and the varieties under these breed names 
which appeal most to him. 

Before he goes very far, he will wonder how breeds 
come into existence, and who makes breed laws. For, 
each breed must have its law, or it would soon be changed 
beyond recognition, by the many breeders into whose 
hands it passes, each of whom may like to mold it a bit 
to his better liking. 

The making of a breed or variety is, at the initial 
stages, a matter of individual work ; or, sometimes, of 
accident. Sometimes, two or more people agree to work 
together to perfect a certain type of bird. After a time, 
they -begin to tell the public about it, and when they 
have bred it to a uniformity sufficient to comply with 
the rules of admission to the Standard of Perfection, — 
that sum of all poultry law, — the originator, or origina- 
tors, apply to have it "admitted." Sometimes there is 



CHOOSING AMONG THE BREEDS 23 

an intermediate step. Various breeders may get together, 
form a Club for the new candidate, formulate a Standard 
for it which seems to them best fitted for the ideal de- 
velopment of the new variety, or breed, and offer both 
the bird and its Standard for acceptance. If accepted, 
this Standard is incorporated in the Standard of Perfec- 
tion, with the other recognized laws of the many breeds 
and varieties. This is done as soon as is feasible after 
the formal admission. It may be when a new edition is 
needed ; it may be when the Revision year comes around 
again. Should it chance to be formally accepted only 
a year or two after a formal revision, it might be in the 
Standard, with description, for some time before a spe- 
cial, ideal illustration appeared. I think this was the 
case with the Columbian Wyandotte, when it first en- 
tered the Standard of Perfection after having complied 
with all the rules for admission. 

The Standard of Perfection separates the many vari- 
eties of fowls which it describes into ten distinctive 
Classes, before it reaches the " Miscellaneous " breeds ; 
of these, there are three, grouped together. Then, 
there are three additional Classes for turkeys, ducks, and 
geese. 

The important Classes among those allotted to the 
domestic hen have been, for many years, the American, 
the Mediterranean, and the Asiatic Classes. But, with 
the phenomenal rise of the Orpington fowl, in its many 
varieties, comparative popularity has changed somewhat, 
and it is probably true that the English Class, at the 
present time, stands next after the American and Medi- 
terranean Classes. This class includes the very old 
Dorkings, the Red Caps, which have made little head- 



24 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

way in this country, and the Orpingtons, which, in the 
1905 edition of the American Standard of Perfection, 
were represented by only one variety, the Buff Orping- 
tons, but which in 191 1 can show three varieties there. 
There are several other varieties in England, where the 
breed originated. 




Dorking Male from Prize Stock. Representing the English Class 

Suppose that you, not even yet a Beginner, it may be, 
but planning to be one, are reading up on Breeds, Classes, 
etc. ; in fact, on everything connected with domesticated 
fowls. You will have made up your mind, possibly, 
whether you want to take up poultry from the utility or 
the fancy standpoint; because this one thing is likely to 
be decided largely by your financial status and your 
business leanings and characteristics. This is, really, 
the first point for you to decide, as upon it must depend, 



CHOOSING AMONG THE BREEDS 25 

to a great extent, your choice of a breed. At least, if 
you decide on commercial poultry, first, last, and all the 
time, you may cut out from consideration most of the 
breeds, without further parley with yourself or any one 
else. The commercial line has its own two divisions, 
which are not wholly sharp, because, even though one 
go in for eggs especially, the conditions are such that 




The Most Typical Representative of American Ideas among General Purpose 
Fowls. American Class. (Courtesy of Mrs. Benigna G. Kalb, Texas) 

he must produce more or less poultry meat for sale. If 
you are planning on a large scale, the matter of two or 
three cents a pound will be of moment to you, and you 
will be careful not to select. a breed which has black pin- 
feathers. The Houdan, the Langshan, and the Black 
Minorca will each present its appeal to you, it may be, 
but you will not listen, because, although each of these 
has its " talking points," it has not become an outstand- 
ing breed in this country. And, when this is' true of a 
long-tried variety, this one fact alone is sufficient to warn 



26 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



the Beginner to let it alone. The commercial growers 
of poultry meat in America have, in the great majority, 
found the American breeds to meet their needs, and this 
is especially true if they desire to combine meat and egg 
production. In any case, it is safe for you not to let 
your first questionings cover any beyond the American 




Cornell Feed Hopper in Active Use. White Leghorns, representing the 
Mediterranean Class 



varieties, the Orpingtons and the Mediterraneans. The 
first two are sufficiently good general-purpose groups, 
in nearly all their varieties, for any poultry man who 
chances to like them ; the last is in some quarters ac- 
credited to be the champion e^r^ producer of the world, 
among domesticated hens. All the Mediterranean breeds 
are very superior layers. There are five breeds, in 
thirteen varieties, under this class. Two of the Minorca 
varieties, and one of the Leghorn varieties are black ; 
which fact shuts them out of the consideration of the 



CHOOSING AMONG THE BREEDS 27 

large producer. The Minorcas have large size and lay 
a handsome large white egg ; but they make little head- 
way, so far, against the Leghorns. The Leghorns, 
White, Brown, and Buff, have a host of admirers, the 
White being most popular. All are prolific, hardy, non- 
sitting in instinct. The Standard of Perfection says 
that they are identical except in the distinctive colors. 
But, if you would like to hear some comment on this 
point, talk Leghorns with from ten to fifty Leghorn 
breeders. I feel rather sure that you will find none 
among them who will agree that the seven Leghorn 
varieties are thus identical, with the single exception of 
color. Very similar, in many points, all will admit them 
to be. But identical ? In theory, perhaps. But, not 
even the White Leghorn flocks of various poultrymen 
who have them in purity are in fact identical in charac- 
teristics with one another. 

Among the Rose-Comb Brown Leghorns, for instance, 
there is a wide variation in type, among different flocks. 
I do not think it is very generally known that there are 
two types. 'These are really very distinct, when we con- 
sider that they are supposedly bred to the same Standard 
of Perfection. Until recently, it was a standing puzzle to 
me that the authorities should so often say that the Rose- 
Comb Brown Leghorn laid a smaller egg than the White 
Leghorn. Some years ago, too, I sold, through a poul- 
try supply house, a sitting 1 of eggs from this breed. 
They were refused, on the ground that they were not 
from pure stock, the proof adduced being that the eggs 
were not chalky white. On one other occasion, I re- 
ceived a card, saying : " Eggs received in good shape. 
Would like to have you explain how the eggs come to be 



28 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



not pure white. I have raised Leghorns a number of 
years, and have always had pure white eggs." Upon 
this, I wrote to one or two poultrymen whom I knew to 




Dark Cornish Fowls. In Oriental Class. (Storrs Experiment Station) 

have had other Rose-Comb Brown Leghorn eggs besides 
my own, inquiring as to the color of these others. One 
of the other lots was sold by the man who, at that time, 
was winning all the first prizes in the largest show in the 
country. The replies stated that all the eggs seemed 



CHOOSING AMONG THE BREEDS 29 

much alike to their writers, and I dismissed the com- 
plaints as perhaps whims of the complainants in question. 

But, withal, I could not see why such a small egg was 
frequently attributed to this variety ; as, in my hands, its 
eggs were of larger average size than those from the 
best White Leghorn breeders, three of whom were repre- 
sented in my stock. In the spring of 19 10, however, I 
bought some eggs for hatching from a leading winner at 
the New York show for a number of years in succession. 
These eggs were very white, but nearly every one was 
ridged or abnormally shaped in some way, and they 
were scarcely more than two thirds the size of the eggs 
which my own Brown Leghorns had always produced. 
Then I began to understand why I received testimonials, 
now and then, saying the eggs were larger than the 
writers had expected to see. The fowls themselves 
differ almost as much. In the case of the producers of 
the chalky eggs, double mating had been practiced, and 
all the red color bred out of the birds, eggs, feathers, and 
all. In the other type, single mating was the rule, 
and the red showed in the handsomely colored males, 
the lovely seal brown of the females, and the cream-white 
rather than chalk-white of the eggs. All this does not 
explain why the chalk-white eggs are so much smaller; 
but the fact remains that, as produced by pullets, not 
one of them from our hands goes to a customer for table 
eggs, as we feel it an imposition on the buyer to offer 
them even to this kind of customer. I think this type 
must be largely responsible for the well-known lack of 
size in " grocery eggs." 

In the matter of prize winning in public competition, 
the Rose-Comb Brown Leghorn holds the breed prize 



3° 



Nil. BKGIXXKR IX POULTRY 



for most profit above cost of feed and greatest average 
number of eggs for all in competition ; most of the best 
prizes other than this, for some years in succession, have 
gone to the White Leghorns. Successive contests have 
reaffirmed results to such an extent that the manager of 
the birds in competition has reported his conviction that 
the best layers are within the Leghorn, Orpington, and 
Wyandotte breeds. These results are reported from 
the other side of the globe. A report said to be from a 
government poultry expert credits a White Leghorn pul- 
let with 152 eggs in six months, and a Silver Wyandotte 
hen with 193 eggs in her second-year test. This report 
comes from New Zealand, where women have the suf- 
frage. Whether this makes any difference in the poultry 
reports, tradition as yet sayeth not, but it is generally 
conceded that hens lay better in this part of the world 
than they do in America. 

It may be worth your while to fix firmly in mind one 
dictum of the American Standard of Perfection, to the 
effect that the most useful specimens of the Leghorn 
breed are those which approach nearest in size and also 
in shape to the requirements of the Standard. If this be 
true, it disposes at once of your idea that because you 
are to breed only for utility purposes, you will not need 
the Standard. I hope, however, that the day is not far 
distant when separate Breed Standards maybe available, 
at least for all the more important breeds. Such com- 
pendiums could be sold cheaply, and would meet a brisk 
demand. 

In choosing a fancy breed, remember these vital 
points : — 

(a) A new breed gives more culls than an old one. 



3 2 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



(b) A parti-colored breed is more difficult to breed to 
perfection than one of solid color. 

(c) A buff breed is more difficult to breed than it 
appears to be, mixture of breeding color leading to mot- 
tling of shades ; and fading of 
older plumage giving a similar 
appearance when any new 
feathers are present. 

(d) A white breed is difficult 
to breed chalk-white. 

(e) A red breed gives difficul- 
ties somewhat similar to those 
connected with buff birds. 

(/*) A black breed tends toward 
purple sheen instead of the com- 
monly desired greenish sheen. 
(V) The white, the red, and the buff breeds are 
usually higher in popularity than black or parti-colored 
breeds. 

These points may be vital to the Beginner who 
wishes to become a fancier. Too often he learns then 
by making wrong choices, which he must correct later. 




Buff Birds often Show Mottled 
Shades 



IV 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH THE 
MOTHER HEN 

The Right Kind of Eggs — Deterioration in Eggs — The 
Fierce Sitting Hen — The Novice Learning — "Made 
to Sell to Amateurs " — You and the Hen — Handling 
the Sitters — Good Quarters for Sitters — Nests for 
Sitters — Warding off Difficulties — Moving the 
Broody Hen — Testing — Brooding 

When one loves fowls, it is most fascinating work to 
keep company with them through the various phases of 
their life history, as it develops. Most people approach 
it backwards, making acquaintance with the matured bird 
first, the infant and developing progeny later. Every 
year, every month, — almost every day, — there is some- 
thing to learn. Even after one has been a poultryman 
almost a lifetime, he will still learn new facts, if he be 
open-minded and open-eyed. 

When one is to hatch with hens, it is one of the nice 
tasks to make sure that the right kind of eggs in the 
proper number are ready and as fresh as possible, just 
at the right time. Because one may be uncertain as to 
just when the hens will be ready to sit, eggs may chance 
to be kept on hand awaiting their pleasure, during several 
weeks. During all this time, but especially after the 
first ten days of holding, these eggs are deteriorating. 
Experiments by Station workers have shown us the per- 
centage of deterioration found by these workers. This 
D 33 



34 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

may vary, and would vary with the temperatures, and 
perhaps with other variations in handling, but these 
figures may be taken as fairly showing the average facts 
when eggs are well kept in favorable temperatures. 
The Cornell Station found that, after three weeks' hold- 
ing, the hatch was 12 percent; after five weeks, 6 per 
cent. The chart gives other percentages found. 

Of all the fearsome lions in the way of the genuine 
Beginner with poultry, none, I think, is so fierce and 
forbidding as the sitting hen. Forbidding, in fact, as 
you feel certain when she warns you, with frequent and 
shrill threatenings, to keep a safe distance. Fierce, 
according to breed and individual disposition, as she 
attacks, with wing and beak, the thief who would touch 
her precious chicks ; actualities, or possibilities only, 
though they be. The question as to how to handle the 
sitting hens is possibly the commonest of all. It comes 
from nearly every Beginner whose previous life has not 
been brought into touch with poultry except at the table 
end. And, strangely enough, it is one most frequently 
neglected by writers. It is difficult, as I have found by 
trying, for one who has always known about fowls and 
their handling, to imagine the state of mind of one 
who knows nothing at all about their ways and needs. 

Poultry workers are a unit on one point, at least, viz. 
that failure will be almost assured if the sitter is left to 
her duties in the company of the other birds. Good 
practice universally favors moving the sitter to a quiet, 
secluded place, comfortably warm during February and 
March, and comfortably cool during the heated term. 
Though I have never seen this statement made, my 
repeated experiences convince me that a good hatch 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 35 

depends very largely on the comfort of the sitter. If 
she is ailing, or harbors vermin, or even if her nest is not 
properly built, she will be so uneasy as to imperil the 
hatch. Even if she is thin in flesh, she is not so likely 
to give a good hatch as is the fat hen. Breeds, varieties, 
and individuals differ in this matter, but the average hen 
in good condition, with a well-made nest, and no disturb- 
ing conditions, has a good chance to bring a good hatch 
from good eggs. Those varieties which have Asiatic 
blood, or this blood combined with Mediterranean 
(a common combination), may be uncertain in their 
individual tendencies. Some will be good sitters and 
mothers, some poor ; the more purely of Asiatic blood, 
the more uncertain, clumsy, and generally irritating they 
may be. Such hens may take " the sitting fever " so 
hard that they will not eat for the first week; some 
never eat properly while sitting. This is one chief 
reason why a sitter should be in good condition when 
her task begins. Else, she will become but skin and 
bone in the course of the month which is near the real 
sitting period; even though hens' eggs need but 21 
days' incubation, the days consumed in moving and 
settling the hen, and the two or possibly three days 
before it is wise to attempt to remove her with her 
chicks will nearly make the month. 

Practically all the large and the intermediate breeds 
have more or less of Asiatic blood. Many of those 
which do not are non-sitters. The White Wyandotte 
is the best sitter and mother with which I am familiar. 
These are a little more easily moved than others, al- 
though hens of most breeds can be handled almost at 
will, if one know how. 



36 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Webster's Dictionary says that the word "broody," 
meaning "inclined to brood," is rare. I think his inti- 
mates were not poultry people. I use the word "sitter" 
mostly ; but many always speak of " broody hens " and 
even use the word as a noun, speaking of the hen as a 
"broody." "Brooding," proper, is warming and shel- 
tering the chicks after hatching. 




Winter Chicks in Large Open Shed. Columbian Mother. Columbians Have 
Some Asiatic Blood 



There are people who hatch with the incubator and 
brood with the hen. Others have a different idiosyn- 
crasy, and hatch with hens, to bunch several broods 
together and brood with the wooden mother. They 
believe that they do the work with less trouble, or with 
better' ultimate success, than when working in the regu- 
lation way. Yet, in doing this, they but add the disad- 
vantages of both methods together; for their hen-hatched 
brooder chicks will have lice and their incubator-hatched 
chicks, brooded with the hen, will have been subjected 
to every handicap that may come from machine hatch- 
ing, before the hen is given a chance to show what she 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 37 

can do. For this reason, it seems to me that these 
methods are to the last degree inconsistent and unde- 
sirable. 

The hen-hatched and hen-mothered chick is at the 
least free from the handicaps which are almost univer- 
sally, at the present time, conceded to weight down the 
incubator chick. The hen starts fairly, and the handler, 
if the right kind of a student, will really learn more 
pertaining to his business by hatching with hens, while 
he is still a novice, than he can possibly learn through 
the use of the machine. One significant quotation from 
the manufacturers of one of the modern incubators 
may illumine the mind of any Beginner. They say : 
" Fully two thirds of the incubators made each year 
are made to sell to amateurs and Beginners.''' It is 
added that such machines are never seen on the sol- 
idly established places, where the workers " know the 
ropes." But they are sold by the thousands to Begin- 
ners, who fail with them and quit the work, or else get 
decent machines later, when they have gained some 
expensive experience. It is to save the Beginners from 
most of this expensive experience that this book is writ- 
ten, by one who has been through the experience school. 

If you, reader, grasp, at the outset, this idea that a 
large proportion of the very cheap incubators are virtual 
traps to get your money, you will be far more ready to 
give the hen a little sympathy in the place of vitupera- 
tion, or at the least to make some allowance for her 
when you are tempted by poor results to lay all the 
blame upon her. I cannot too strongly impress it upon 
you that you and the hen are to do team work, and that 
if you do your part wisely and well, adding the full 



38 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

quota of brains to the combination, you can overcome 
her lacks very largely, and the team will win out to- 
gether. But I wish to say this very plainly : If your 
brains will bring you more money and more satisfaction 
in some other combination, you are committing only 
folly to cast in your lot with poultry, unless it becomes 
a matter of health. I think this is the rock on which 
many poultry raisers split. If the business becomes 
large enough to furnish a living income, it will take a 
man's time, and he must ponder well whether or not 
this is the best investment of his time and strength, all 
things considered. 

It is in handling the hens which are to perform the 
service of incubators for you that the knowledge of hen 
nature on which I have so strongly insisted will early 
and freely be drawn upon. It is usually essential that 
the sitters be moved to a special brooding apartment, 
and one who does not understand a hen can seldom 
move her successfully, for use as a sitter. The Medi- 
terraneans, being " non-sitters," do not often manifest 
the sitting instinct, and it is common belief that when 
they do, they are fickle and unreliable. However, if 
handled by one who knows how, most -of them prove 
as reliable as those of the heavier breeds. And, when 
not too fussy, they make the best of mothers for the 
baby chicks. One who reasons on the subject will 
easily see in advance that a nervous, flighty breed like 
most of those in the Mediterranean Class, could not be 
expected to make as good sitters and mothers under all 
circumstances, as would the hens of quieter nature. 
Especially is this true under the close surveillance of 
modern methods. In some circumstances, — for in- 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 



39 



stance, when a hen was raising her brood alone, out in 
the fields, — a bird of the Leghorn or Game type, which 
would fight fiercely for its young, might prove better 
than a bird of the more sluggish breeds. And there are 
some kinds of eggs, notably those of pheasants, for 
which a light-weight sitter is usually considered very 
superior. The Bantam breeds are sometimes thus used. 




Rose-Comb Brown Leghorn Chicks. A Nervous but Sprightly Breed 

The " apartment house " for the sitters does not 
need to be made to order, if it have natural advantages. 
Early in the season, it needs to be, though warm, well 
ventilated. Later, it needs to be cool, and even better 
ventilated. The loft of a barn, or an airy cellar, may fur- 
nish good conditions early in the season. Later, they 
may become, the latter too close and the former too hot, 
even to the extent of ruining the hatches. I often use 
the second floor of the barn for early hatches, although 
it is not very convenient ; the main floor or the barn 
cellar does very well for the later ones. If no such 
good, secluded place is ready to hand, one may then, 
with a clear conscience, spend a little money to prepare 
a special room for the sitters. Such a room, at its best, 
is so placed that it will be sheltered from the heaviest 



40 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

winds, yet in a sufficiently airy location. It is in shed 
form, at least as far as being open on one side is con- 
cerned, and it is placed in at least partial shade. In- 
deed, if small, it may be movable, so that it may have 
more shade as the season advances. To my mind, it 
will be decidedly better without a board floor, provided 
that you raise the dirt floor sufficiently ; storms must 
not flood it with surface water. Dirt floors are usually 
filled in to the top of the sills, when there are sills. 

The nests may be made in a series, half-a-dozen or 
less being united. These are less trouble to move 
about than the detached nests. An invalid might find 
the detached nests better, because lighter to handle. It 
is decidedly better to have the nests open at the front, 
rather than at the top, as the hens often break eggs in 
stepping down into the latter kind. To make a series, 
seven-eighths by twelve-inch material may be used for 
ends and partitions, half-inch stuff for the tops and 
backs. Indeed, they may be all in skeleton form but 
the back, if desired ; but in practice we find it better to 
have the tops solid. A three-inch strip will make the 
front firm enough, and retain the eggs. This is, of 
course, nailed across the lower front of the series. One 
may get almost the same results by using cheap cracker 
or soap boxes, provided only that they can be had in 
the right sizes. The size needed will vary with the 
breed, but the general-purpose hen, weighing about six 
pounds, will need a nest about seventeen or eighteen 
inches long, and at least a foot deep. If the nest is 
shallow from front to rear, the hen will sit sidewise al- 
ways, but she cannot be so comfortable as in a nest 
which permits her to assume any desired position. I 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 41 

think the one worst mistake made by the majority of 
poultry handlers, even those who are not Beginners, is 
to make the nests and coops too small. A foot added 
to the length and width of a small coop may double its 
capacity and more than double the possibilities of secur- 
ing a well-raised brood. 

In speaking of depth, above, I meant depth from 
front to rear. The actual depth of the nest, which car- 
ries the eggs to be hatched, is really one of the impor- 
tant points, taken in conjunction with its shape. Upon 
these two points often rests the fate of the expected 
brood. If you ask me what is the one thing most to be 
feared in connection with the sitting hen, I shall be 
compelled to answer, " Broken eggs." It is this that 
leads to every other evil. It fouls both hen and nest, 
and this leads to attacks of vermin. It closes the pores 
of the eggs so that many chicks are almost sure to die 
in the shell. With many chicks dead in the shell, and 
the rest swarming with lice, what chance have you left for 
success ? 

There are three things which you can do to ward off 
these evils ; these three things are worth more than all 
the after work of every kind that you can possibly give. 
You can make the nest of such shape in the bottom that 
the eggs will neither lie upon their fellows, nor roll away 
from them and out from under the sitter ; you can pow- 
der the hen carefully with insect powder at the begin- 
ning of each week of incubation, holding her head 
downward, and making sure that the moderate amount 
of powder used works down to the skin where the lice 
hide ; you can select your eggs very carefully for firm, 
substantial shells. If you do these three things, feed 



42 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

and water properly, and give her fertile eggs, you will 
usually have no need whatever to berate your sitting 
hen. I should warn you again, however, that the con- 
dition of the hen at the beginning of the hatch is a most 
important point. Some of your hens will not make good 
hatchers because their temperature is too low, especially 
early in the season. A hen that is too fat will be 
clumsy ; but one in high condition, plump and in finest 
health, will be the one that will usually give you the 
best hatches, other things being equal. 

Your sitters should be kept quiet, and be subject to 
no interference, either from other birds, or from chil- 
dren or adults who are not their regular attendants. 
They should leave the nest at least once a day, for feed 
and water. Most people remove them all at the same 
time during the morning round, in order to save uncer- 
tainties, and see that they all get back properly. This 
is one of the regular morning chores. It is altogether 
better to start several sitters at the same time. If eggs 
are strongly fertile, from a good even lot of hens, you 
will have a fine bunch of chicks, all of similar age and 
strength, so that they start fair, at least, if from good stock. 

If anything is wrong with the eggs, as shown at 
testing time, the good eggs can be divided among a 
part of the hens, and fresh clutches given to the rest, 
thus saving their time. I would not give one hen more 
than eleven hens' eggs during February or March, at 
the north ; but from April I onward, it is usually safe 
to use thirteen, and large hens will cover fifteen nicely. 
But one should always consider that the hen must move 
her eggs about in the nest continually. Therefore, the 
more eggs she has, the greater are the chances of acci- 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 43 

dent in newly placing them and therefore, also, the need 
for a little " play " of the eggs ; if they lie too closely 
together, it will be difficult to change them about ; if 
the nest is too large, they will roll too freely. It is wise 
to let the hen shape the nest well before more than 
one or two dummy eggs are put in ; then the size which 
conforms to her body will determine how many she can 
cover well. All outlying empty corners should be filled 
with the nesting material. 

Speaking of the dummy eggs reminds me that I have 
omitted to describe the best way to move the broody 
hen from the laying house to the sitting apartment. 
The first, and perhaps the chief point, is to let her grow 
to be a determined sitter before you attempt to move 
her. Not even the most experienced handlers can move, 
with uniform success, hens that are newly broody. Let 
them remain on the laying nest about two or three days, 
or till the sitting fever is fully established ; then, having 
prepared the nest, remove the hen carefully and quietly, 
just at dusk, to the new location. Give her some dummy 
eggs, and, if the nest be a detached box, face it toward 
the wall, leaving only sufficient space to give the bird 
air. About twenty-three hours later, rotate the box, 
offer feed and water, and let her come off of her own 
initiative, if she will do so. If not, take her off. She 
will then, probably, first become aware that everything 
has changed ; she is in a strange place ! She will 
probably cackle, in great consternation, and may attempt 
to fly out. Do not interfere with her in the least. As 
dark comes on, she is rather likely to look about, see 
the eggs, and scramble on to the nest. If not, replace 
her, and face the box again toward the wall. Repeat 



44 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

the process on the next afternoon, just before dusk, 
and each day thereafter until she goes back of her own 
accord. Then leave the box facing outward, and after 
one more day she may safely bave t he real eggs which 
she is to incubate. If you give her the good eggs when 
first moved, it is your risk. 

If the nests are in a series, the procedure is the same, 
except that the box cannot readily be faced toward the 
wall. In such cases we throw a loosely woven phos- 
phate or feed bag over the front of the nest. Should 
the hen prove obstinate, it may become necessary to 
use a board to shut her in ; or, the series can be made 
with a wire netting front, which opens as a door, all in one 
piece. This is probably the best plan, for one then 
knows just where his sitters are, all the time. If the 
nests are of separate boxes, with board floors, I usually 
throw in two spadefuls of fine moist earth before adding 
the generous armful of soft hay, which makes the best 
nest. I often use excelsior, but this niakes a very poor 
nest unless one is careful to pull and fluff it till there is 
not a knot or lump left. Any bunch in the bottom of 
the nest makes much trouble. The rim of the nest is 
very important. The hen likes it high, so that she may 
snuggle deep into it. This is good, if one does not make 
it so high that she tends to break eggs when returning 
to the nest after absence. 

Again I say, study the hens. Knowledge of their 
habits and likings will help you out of nearly every diffi- 
culty. Lack of it will keep you always an unskillful 
poultryman. Individuals will be exceptions that prove 
the rule ; but as a flock, the birds will have the same 
general tendencies. 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 45 

There are several so-called "natural" systems of 
handling sitters, the gist of them being that the hens 
are confined, together, in a system of nests built as a 
series, yet each having its own little run, so that no hen 
may be interfered with, and none can get on the wrong 
nest, — an unfortunate habit with some hens which is 
responsible for a good percentage of lost " sittings " of 
eggs. As the process of incubation must be practically 
continuous, and at a sustained and even temperature, 
the sitting hen must leave the nest but briefly. Gener- 
ally speaking, the eggs should not become so cold that 
they feel cold to the touch. From the second to the 
twelfth of the twenty-one days required, however, the 
danger of a fatal outcome from too long cooling is con- 
siderably greater than it is after the chick is well formed 
in the Qgg, and generating animal heat. Near the end of 
the period, I have known eggs to be left overnight by 
the hen, and still hatch well. One does not care to 
assume the risk voluntarily, however. 

One's " Jack-at-a-pinch " system may consist only of 
the needed nests placed near enough together to be 
handily cared for, in any vacant room ; or in a rough 
shed under a spreading tree when it becomes warm. 
The crucial point is that the hens shall be under such 
control or surveillance that they shall not be able to 
" mix those children up " to the extent of leaving any 
without warmth, or to give a surplusage of two or more 
mothers to one clutch of eggs while others chill. Neither 
must they fight for place. 

Plain, nutritious feed and water and a bath are all the 
sitter needs daily, except to see that she " stays put." 
Whole corn and grass or clover are by far the best 



46 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

feeds for the sitting hen. With these and careful at- 
tention, she will be in better condition at the end of 
incubation than when beginning. A dust bath will be 
her great delight and help, throughout. If eggs are 
not strongly fertile, time can be saved by setting three 
hens at once, and giving the fertile eggs to two, reset- 
ting the third after the first test. I prefer always to 
set two to four hens at once, if conditions permit this. 
The question of resetting after a full period is one 
which often bothers the Beginner. In a poultry paper, 
I recently saw the proud announcement that the author 
of it (presumably a Beginner) has kept one hen sitting 
from March to September. So far from being a matter 
of congratulation does this seem to me that I feel like 
rebuking sharply any one who thus practices cruelty to 
the helpless in his power. A fat hen may, on occasion, 
sit twice ; this will mean not less than seven successive 
weeks, and probably more. But I think this should be 
the extreme limit; it is really too long. 

With goose eggs, especial care is needed to make a 
comfortable nest. It should be fashioned deeper than 
for hens' eggs, as the eggs are often about three inches 
in diameter. The nest should be deep enough so that 
the hen may rest, in part, at least, on the rim of nesting 
material. Three eggs is an uncomfortable number of 
goose eggs, as they do not lie well together ; five is a 
good number on which the hen may sit in fair com- 
fort, and which she can cover properly in a well-made 
nest. 

Testing is such a simple, desirable, and informing act 
that I feel that no one should omit it. Through its in- 
formation, one may, at least in part, count the chickens 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 



47 



before they are hatched. This is one of the ways in 
which we discount the knowledge of our fathers. 
People say that the Egyptians of thousands of years 
ago did count their chickens in advance, at least to the 
extent of offering from the public hatcheries three 
chickens for every four eggs brought them. But this 
was banking on the skill of the breeders and of the 
superintendents of the hatching process. I wonder if 
the " clever Yankee " has, even yet, reached the point 
of equaling the bare-legged Egyptian in skill and clev- 
erness ! 

If you have a reflecting lantern, the easiest tester is a 
large tube or cylinder of pasteboard, set on end, form- 
ing a well into which a 
lantern is dropped. Or, it 
may be set over a lamp 
with a large wick. Just 
opposite the flame, a hole 
is cut in the pasteboard. — 
I have used heavy build- 
ing paper. — Over this is 
gummed a bit of black felt 
or other material impervious 
to light, itself having a cen- 
tral hole scarcely an inch 
and one half in diameter. 
Working in a darkened 
room, one holds the egg up 
to the hole ; the light, shining through the translucent 
egg, showing what has taken place inside the shell. 
With a white-shelled egg, one may test at the end of 
the fifth day, and plainly see the lively, spidery body 




The Easiest Simple Egg Tester. Set 
the Cylinder over the Lamp 



48 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

within which means a developing chick. This small 
body lies on one side (but is mobile within the egg to 
some extent) and toward the large end of the egg. 
Around it, and tending to lie lengthwise of the egg, is an 
indistinct nebula, a bit reddish or darkened ; but much 
of the egg is at this time still clear. The infertile egg, 
or the one which has died very early, may show only a 
central, floating globe a bit darker than the body of the 

per or 

As the chick develops, the darker portion spreads 
and intensifies, day by day, till, when the hatch is about 
two thirds through, the shell is nearly filled with the 
body of the chick, which makes it opaque except for the 
air space. 

Your part of the brooding is very simple. It will 
consist, first, in seeing that the mother's feathers are 
entirely free from matting. A bit of soft feed or of 
white of egg may have caused them to stick together 
near the tips. One morning you may go out to find 
your best chick hung by the neck in this natural noose, 
if you have not made sure that the feathers are free. 
Then, it is rather safe, even if you have powdered the hen 
carefully, to rub one or two drops of liquid oil like sweet 
oil or hens' oil into the down on the head of each chick. 
If there is any reason for distinguishing these chicks, 
set the foot of each one squarely on a soft pine board, 
and punch through the web with a hollow, hand awl 
punch. This works better than any spring punch I 
have seen. The chicks do not need any feed till thirty- 
six hours old, but you can throw in a bit of pulverized 
egg shell, or some chick grit, at once, if you like. Feed 
the hen some whole corn, water her, and leave her to care 



HATCHING AND BROODING WITH MOTHER HEN 



49 



for them. The two points you need to make sure of are 
that there are no rats or other vermin to carry them off, 
and that the coop is placed, if early in the season, in a 
spot sheltered from wind and open to all the sunshine 
possible. Later in the season, you will select a place 
shaded, at least in the heat of the day. Dense and 
complete shade is at all times to be avoided. Air and 
sunshine in moderation are the fowls' best friends. 




Improvised Water Fount 



The water vessel for tiny chicks is to be either a 
patented " fountain " of chick size, in two parts for care- 
ful cleaning, — which may be had in glass, — or an im- 
provised fountain consisting of a tin can reversed in a 
saucer, having one or two holes near what is now the 
bottom, which works on the same principle as the more 
expensive sale fountains ; or, you may use a very shal- 
low dish with a flattish stone in the center to keep the 
chicks out of the water, lest the down get wet when 
they run through it and jostle each other. 

The matter of feeding will be taken up in another 
chapter, and that of the best kinds of coops will also 



5° 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



be treated in another connection. When the chicks are 
very small, I like to inclose the coop with a strip of 
wire netting, making a tiny yard which hinders them 
from straying away, and keeps out most marauders. 
Permanent framed netting panels are neater, and al- 
ways ready. 



V 
BEGINNING ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 

" Follow Copy " — Good Eggs the First Requisite — Work 
that is above Average — " Cold Storage " Eggs for 
Hatching — Exigencies of Trade — February rather 
Early — " Fertility " — Eggs at $150 per Sitting — 
Temperature Controls Development — Advance Care 

While I believe that the Beginner may learn more 
about that which he is really studying, the fowls them- 
selves, by hatching first with hens, rather than with the 
machine, I am aware that a fair proportion of people 
will prefer to begin with the incubator. Perhaps the 
best general rule I can give them, which will cover 
everything, is, "Follow copy!" In other words, the 
most common mistake made is in trying to follow the 
notions of many writers who think they know more 
about incubation than the manufacturers of the machines 
can know. The printed instructions which go with the 
machine are to be followed, for success. That circum- 
stances alter cases is a truism. The machine which 
you have bought may require different handling from 
those which A, B, C, and D wrote about, and only the 
manufacturers are supposed to know the best way to 
handle those particular machines. 

Absolutely the first requisite for artificial incubation 
is good eggs. Is this not true of all incubation ? Cer- 
tainly ; but the egg has a harder gauntlet to run in arti- 
ficial incubation than it has under natural incubation, 
and, say what we may about incubator chicks being "just 

51 



52 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

as good," the fact remains that white diarrhoea most 
commonly attacks broods of incubator chicks. More- 
over, the spirit of the age has no use for the "just as 
good " article ; it wants the best to be had. When any 
one at all familiar with hatching conditions will declare 
positively, as Mr. Milo Hastings has done, "It has been 
thoroughly demonstrated that with good parentage, good 
incubation, and good brooder conditions, white diarrhoea 
is unknown," it becomes entirely a question of the man 
back of the work, if we admit that these affirmations 
are true. Hastings places all diseases of poultry in 
three divisions : (a) those inborn ; (b) those induced by 
unfavorable conditions, whether of food or of environ- 
ment ; (c) those which are due to noxious bacteria. The 
last would include all the contagious diseases, those 
which are endemic, etc. 

It has been said that excessive cost of production and 
excessive losses in raising the stock cover much of the 
reason for failure, when that comes. It goes without 
saying that no man sets out, in any business, to be a 
failure ; he sets out to be the exceptionally successful one. 
He may not be aware of this, but it is in "the back of 
his mind." 

If you, then, who read these lines, expect to be a 
success, it is necessary that you do work that is above 
average in giving your chicks a heritage of health and 
vigor, and in surrounding them with favorable conditions 
as to food, sanitation, etc. "Just as good" positively 
will not do ! I think the greatest difficulty the novice 
poultry raiser meets is in finding some one "reliable " on 
whom to rely. Down at the bottom, however, it is too 
often the worker himself who is not sufficiently reliable. 



BEGINNING ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 



53 



It may be because of lack of time, or it may be because 
of lack of ability to handle details. In the case of most 
Beginners, probably, this detail poultry work is added 
to the "day's work " so that the worker does not have 
a fair show. This means that he cannot give the poultry 
a fair show, either. 




The Cornell Gasoline Brooder House at New Jersey Station ; One in Process 
of Construction. Saves on Cost of Production 

Early in March, one year, a suburban Beginner de- 
lightedly announced to me that she had an incubator 
full of chicks ready to hatch. She wanted me to see 
them when they came off. She was full of enthusiasm. 
The actual hatch was twenty-two chicks, as I learned 
later. A month later I asked about her chicks. Her 
face fell. "All dead." The cause was white diarrhoea ; 
a related fact, that she was using a second-hand incubator, 
probably carrying the germs of the disease. 



54 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

The machine, the egg, and the handler are the three 
great factors to a successful machine hatch. Inasmuch 
as the handler furnishes both the eggs and the machine, 
it looks as though he were the most important of all. 
The greatest temptation a modern business man has, it 
may be, is to press the button before he is ready. So, 
the Beginner with artificial hatching and brooding. 

To send for the catalogues of six or eight of the best 
machines, to study them carefully with reference to their 
weakest points, and to attend some show where they are 
on exhibition, and where he can question the agent, 
should be possible to almost any Beginner. 

The mistake he makes most frequently, is to buy be- 
fore he has digested this information ; to buy, perhaps, 
from a silver-tongued agent of number one or number 
two, before he has heard the silver words of numbers 
three, six, and as many more as he can capture ; or, as 
can capture him ! 

A book like this can scarcely recommend any one 
machine. I will say, only, that, personally, I prefer a 
well-made, copper-tanked, hot-water machine ; but that 
the hot-air machine is at present more popular. Also, 
that the trend is more and more toward the sand-tray 
machines, as events seem to point to the fact that non- 
moisture has been the cause of many failures in the past. 

The manufacturers of the older machines are, in the 
large, more conservative in statement than the newest 
claimants of the Beginner's money. Whether a Begin- 
ner is wise to trust himself to other Beginners in such a 
fundamental matter, let the good sense of the buyer 
decide for him. 

One of the Bright Ones has recently said : " The 



BEGINNING ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 



55 



Cold Storage Egg is all right — as long as it is left 
there!" But, the real Mission of the cold-storage 
egg is not to remain in storage. It was put there with 
the one idea: to await its coming out; and its bringing- 
out party is a masquerade, in which it takes the part 
either of a fresh egg, or a " Just-as-Good-As." 



t 4k 


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■ , js.<!i £f»> '•%» aw?- ' ■■' \ 


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bMB 







A Part of Cornell's White Leghorn Record. Chicks Artificially Hatched and 
Brooded, and Graded as " Weak " 

If I should have the temerity to ask you, " What 
about incubating a cold-storage egg^" you would not 
even consider the subject. You would only laugh scorn- 
fully at the folly of such a proposition. Yet, I suspect 
that there are very few fanciers who do not send out 
eggs for hatching, and very few poultry raisers of any 
kind who do not try to incubate at home, eggs which 
have several of the qualities which go to make cold- 
storage eggs to you, unthinkable, as possible producers 
of chicks. 



56 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

I believe that the real reason for the failure of thou- 
sands of incubator eggs to produce vigorous chicks, and 
of other thousands of incubator chicks to come to ma- 
turity, is to be sought in the quality of mind of the man 
or woman who handles the stock and eggs. To this 
may be added the exigencies of the fancier's trade. 
These exigencies usually demand that birds be kept in 
yards. As the trade begins earlier each year, it comes 
about that a goodly proportion of the eggs for hatching 
are laid at a season when eggs are produced contrary to 
nature, by fowls in unnatural conditions, supplied with 
foods that are not natural to the breeding season. 

Some time ago I inspected the brooder houses at one 
of our State Agricultural Experiment Stations. I had 
thought I noticed a slight hesitancy, when I had asked 
to see the brooder stock. While I was looking them 
over, the poultryman in charge told me confidentially 
that he kept the brooder houses locked, and showed the 
chicks as little as possible, because he was ashamed of 
them. Yet the plant itself was good, the man clever 
and systematic ; and he told me that he had done abso- 
lutely everything he knew to be for the welfare of the 
chicks. Still, even the best of them could scarcely be 
said to look rugged, and a large proportion were actu- 
ally drooping, or sick ; this was in February. 

We may admit that February, at the north, is still 
rather early for hatching and brooding. Stock is con- 
fined, and supplies of eggs are not wholly regular, so 
that some will be kept in storage (if not "cold-storage") 
several weeks, it may be, before being incubated. And, 
even if the eggs were all right when gathered, they may 
be far from all right — for anything but " just-as-goods " 





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58 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

and baking purposes — by the time they are shipped 
to the customer, or insultingly offered to a self-respecting 
hen at home. Then, there is another view of the mat- 
ter which I think is often overlooked : this is, that a 
pretty good proportion of the eggs gathered in January 
and February will have been chilled before they were 
stored at all. Much is said about the low fertility of 
eggs, from January to March. In my opinion, this 
supposed " infertility " is more often due to chilling of 
the eggs than to any other cause. Many use the word 
" fertility " very loosely. When an authority states, 
gravely, that eggs from the same lot showed perhaps 
75 per cent of fertility in the machine and 85 or 90 
per cent under the hen, we know that no strict mean- 
ing can be put on the word " fertile " in this connection. 
But, be this as it may, there are other causes for poor 
hatches than real infertility. Eggs laid in these three 
early months are more than likely to be held longer 
than at any other period of the year. Tims, age and 
low temperature, both of which have affected the cold- 
storage egg at which you may jest when considered as to 
liatchability, are very likely to be conditions also of the 
loudly advertised Eggs for Hatching at five to $150 — 
they say! — per sitting. Even though you could be 
convinced that any eggs are worth that amount of 
money, if of the best, the pampered hens that lay 
eggs held at $150 a sitting cannot be made exempt 
from Nature's laws. If subjected to exposure, their 
eggs chill, even as the five-cent eggs of the grocer 
type ; and, if the stock be kept under conditions such 
that the eggs cannot chill during the extreme season, 
the balance of Nature pulls down in another direction, 



BEGINNING ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 



59 



and the eggs become largely unhatchable through lack 
of stamina in the breeding stock. 

Professor Horace Atwood recently expressed, in a 
bulletin from the West Virginia Station, a universal 
rule, as follows : " The temperature at which the eggs 
are kept is the factor which controls the rate of de- 
velopment of the embryos." He was applying it to the 




Incubator Cellar, West Virginia Experiment Station 



eggs under incubation, and went on to say : " If the 
temperature at which eggs are kept (in the machine) is 
slightly too high, the eggs will hatch before the twenty- 
first day ; while temperature which is slightly too low 
may delay the hatch till the twenty-second or the twenty- 
third day, or possibly even later." We who have prac- 
ticed artificial incubation did not need that Professor 
Atwood should tell us this. We know it since long ago. 



60 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

But, we often ignore the related fact that the growth of 
the embryo is a process only suspended, between the 
period of exclusion and that of being put to incubate, 
and it is a process suspended because, and only because 
of the temperature in wliicJi it is held. Subject the em- 
bryo, accustomed to a temperature of 104 to 107, — 
which is the temperature of the hen's blood, — immedi- 
ately upon exclusion to a temperature of 32, or below, 
and what right have you to think that it will not be 
injured, or die outright? Subject it, on the contrary, 
to a temperature of 100 to 140 degrees in an express 
car, and what right have you to expect that it will do 
other than take up the arrested development when the 
temperature is favorable, or die when it is fatally high ? 

All the foregoing is simply to lead up convincingly 
to this : The proper care and handling of chicks de- 
mands, in advance, all that combination of favorable 
conditions which will insure the production of a perfect 
egg, well-shelled : but it demands no less the best of 
care for that egg while the process of development 
is suspended ; and also that this process shall not be 
suspended too long. A fertile egg, after it is presented 
to us, is a living, young animal, existing in what may 
be termed an abnormal environment. In a temperature 
of 40 to 50 degrees, or thereabouts (50 preferred), it 
will remain in excellent condition (if kept dry) for 
about ten days, and will hatch, up to that time, nearly 
as well as what we term " strictly fresh." In a damp 
place, however, it may very soon be attacked by some 
injurious fungus which finds its way through the shell. 

Despite the discouraging ravages of white diarrhoea, 
in its varied forms, the season of 191 1 saw an access 



BEGINNING ARTIFICIAL INCUBATION 6 1 

of confidence in artificial hatching, among many who 
rank as leaders, before unknown. I attribute it chiefly 
to the poultry world having passed from under the 
domination of the non-moisture idea. One worker, 
who said he would scorn to get less than 70 per cent or 
80 per cent of the eggs put in, in good, livable chicks, 
attributed his own success, so uniform, to the use of a 
first-class hygrometer. 

In selecting a machine, the crucial point seems to 
be to get one well ventilated, with a good case made 
of seasoned wood, and with proper packing and a good 
thermostat regulator. The trouble does not usually, in 
these days, lie with the regulator. I once bought a 
one-hundred-egg machine for ten dollars. It had 
double doors (the inner one of glass), the best lamp 
I have used, the best outside case I have seen on 
any machine, and a good regulator. In all these it was 
almost faultless. Yet it would not keep up heat in a 
room below 60 degrees and it had an egg tray that 
sagged and billowed enough to make a dangerous vari- 
ation in temperatures. The brooder that went with it 
was worthless, even as a "fireless." I could never see 
why, with so much that was above the average, two 
slouchy points should have been permitted to spoil the 
machine. 

Once the eager Beginner has become possessed of 
a machine of good, all-around type, and enough un- 
chilled, well-graded, well-shelled, fertile, uniform eggs, 
we may bid him good speed toward the goal, reiterating 
once more the warning : " Follow the directions of 
the man who has used the machine the most times, 
under every imaginable condition ; namely, the maker." 



62 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Concerning the comparative quality of the eggs from 
hens and pullets, as sources of vigorous chicks, the re- 
sults of eight experiments at the West Virginia Station 
tabulate as follows : 





Old Hens 


Pullets 


Total number of eggs incubated less 






those cracked in turning 


I094 


871 


Average weight of eggs per hundred . 


12.96 lb. 


11. 19 lb. 




840 


59 1 


Per cent hatched of eggs incubated . 


76.7 


67.8 


Average weight of chicks per hundred 






when removed from incubator . 


8.28 lb. 


7.12 lb. 


Average weight of chicks at second 






weighing, per hundred 


29.56 lb. 


23.07 lb. 


Total number of recorded deaths . 


42 


35 


Per cent of chicks which died .... 


5 


14.5 



In every item the hens have a decided advantage. 



VI 



HANDLING AND FEEDING THE YOUNG 
FROM MACHINES 

Brooding Equipment — Vital Points in Brooding — The 
Best Brooder — Disinfected Common Sense — From 
Incubator to Brooder — A Fair Chance for Life — Sav- 
ing Chicks, Saving Work, Saving Money — Keep the 
Chicks Outside — A Warm Back — A Fireless Brooder 
— Shipping Baby Chicks — Good Feeds 

Specifically, this chapter deals with handling chicks, 
although much that is general will apply also to all 
young domestic birds. For years, it has been an 
opinion very generally expressed among poultry writers 
that good brooding was a much more difficult matter 
than good incubating. One of the keenest men I know 
of, closely and largely connected with poultry work, 
says he knows of no phase of poultry keeping that 
requires more thought than the proper selection of 
brooding equipment for the young. This equipment 
is always high-priced in the best grades. But, because 
the builders of brooders are more likely to know the 
principles underlying the matter than are those who 
have bestowed less thought on it, it is vital to the 
Beginner to secure the best brooder to be had, unless 
he should decide to use a " fireless." The one reason 
why he can do this is that the " fireless" does not have 
to deal at all with the principles of artificial heating 
and of ventilating such heated space. Beyond this, 
the question of using the fireless brooders is simply 

63 



64 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

a matter of substituting close personal care for the 
automatic work of the higher priced heated brooders. 
One who handles a fireless brooder must expect to give 
time instead of money in order to have his chicks 
" properly brooded." 

" When does one cease to be a Beginner ? " inquires 
one whom poultry people generally call an expert. 
" For myself," he says, " I can say that I am still very 
much in the Beginners' class." Had he said, "the 
learners' class," we could all agree ; for he who ceases 
to learn has ceased to be a reliable worker, or a reliable 
teacher. 

The best article I ever saw on brooding chicks dis- 
cussed " four vital points in brooding." These four 
points were exercise, feed, space, and uniformity in 
age and size of chicks brooded together, in the order 
here given. You may notice that all these are points 
depending on the operator ; hence it must be taken for 
granted that they are based on the use of the best 
brooder attainable. 

Two of the stock questions which editors receive but 
never answer, are, "Which is the best incubator?"; 
" Which is the best brooder ? " I shall not try to give 
the name of the best brooder, but that brooder is the 
best which affords the least chance for the Beginner to 
go wrong. This means, one in which the heat cannot 
go fatally high or drop to a fatally low point ; one in 
which the chicks are free to select for themselves from 
several temperatures, at any given time. It must be 
one which has good circulation of fresh air, and no cor- 
ners where chicks may tend to crowd and smother. 
Because the round hover meets most of this demand, 



HANDLING AND FEEDING YOUNG FROM MACHINES 65 

it is the favorite type. To my mind, a hover should al- 
ways permit ventilation above the chicks ; hence, I 
would have it made of a porous material, instead of 
wood. A thickness of felt, or two of burlap, could be 
used, fastened upon a wooden rim. I would not use a 
hover at all, were it not for the fact that the chicks may 
huddle in a corner of the brooder, if there be no hover. 
The first point in handling the chicks is to leave them 
in the hatching machine till they are strong. More 
chicks are lost for lack of this precaution than from 
any other one cause, in my belief. Nearly every incu- 
bator operator is in such a hustle to lose no time get- 
ting his machine " set " again, that he hurries the chicks 
out of it before they can all stand, and before they 
have sense enough to do anything but huddle toward 
warmth. On the way, he exposes them to cold, and 
possibly does not get the brooder just running right, 
and soon he has a beautiful bunch of crowding, 
soiled, hollow-eyed chicks, and two weeks later, he wont 
have any, and will be so discouraged that he will be 
glad of it ! He will suspect the feed, the eggs, the 
brooder, anything except the real cause, and will pos- 
sibly write to some Station which will tell him he should 
have disinfected his eggs and his incubator. Too many 
people need to disinfect their common sense, so that it 
may grow strong and robust enough to inform them 
that a chick just out of the close, warm Qgg is in no 
state to grapple with the universe the first day ! His 
mother's feathers, or the close, warm spaces of the in- 
cubator are a big enough world for him to learn to use 
at first. When he can safely take more air, open the 
machine ventilators wide ; then, when he has had a few 

F 



66 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

hours of this, open the door a crack, but keep your heat 
well up ; after a few hours, make the crack wider, still 
keeping the heat at not less than 95 down where the 
chicks are. Most machines will show about five degrees 
difference between the bottom and the trays, when the 
door is closed. At all events, keep heat enough so that 
the chicks will spread about happily, and always follow 
this rule as long as you handle them. When they be- 
gin to pant for air, that robust common sense of yours 
will tell you that they need less heat and more air. Do 
not neglect its counsel, no matter what the thermometer, 
the Experiment Stations, and all the poultry papers and 
books combined tell you ! The chick is the only one 
that knows, and he is telling you the facts you can bank on. 

When the chicks are hardened a bit, as above, and 
can all stand, remove them, under cover, to the brooder, 
which you have started 24 hours before, and which reg- 
isters 95 before the chicks are placed in it. If some 
are still weak, remove the strong, but leave the weak in 
the incubator till they are ready. One grower of chicks 
estimates that sorting the chicks so that none of any 
special lot are stronger than the rest will make a differ- 
ence of from 10 to 20 per cent in numbers raised. This 
is a low estimate. Let the variation be great and the 
room limited, or any other condition not wholly favor- 
able, and 50 per cent may not cover this loss. " Noth- 
ing is more bewildering and exhausting to the little 
chick than struggling constantly for life in the midst of 
an immense crowd of his own kind," says the writer 
noted. He puts it strongly ; as the conditions demand. 

Will you give this bit of downy life a fair chance for 
his life by furnishing him with air, warmth, room, so 



68 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

that he may have an even start ? Not till this is done, 
may you go on to that which comes next. The " next " 
will consist of food, in variety, water, and a chance to 
exercise ; simple enough to provide, surely. If you 
want to save work, you can get chick scratch feeds and 
patent cracker feeds of the supply houses; if. you pre- 
fer to save money, you can hustle around till you find 
stale bread — not moldy — at a bakery or restaurant 
possibly, then you can buy a little bran and middlings, 
corn meal if you wish, pin-head oats (steel cut, some 
call it) and cracked corn, and, if you provide clean, 
short litter for him to scratch in, the chick will grow 
thankfully. In cold weather, use effort to make sure 
he cannot get too cold ; in hot weather, make sure he 
cannot get too warm. A brooder house open to the 
south and having much glass is a trap to the Beginner. 
Even an open shed, permitting the sun to shine fiercely 
on a brooder with glass in the top, may bring ruin on 
the entire brood, when the weather passes suddenly 
from cold to hot at mid-spring. A Beginner is almost 
sure to turn out his lamps, when he finds the brooders 
getting much too warm. This will prove fatal when 
night comes on too cool, and the brooder has to be 
heated slowly while the chicks shiver. Better open it 
up wide, turn the lamp low, but keep the brooder itself 
warm, so that it needs only closing to be soon ready to 
warm the chicks, when they need it. 

The real point is to have the chicks in the brooder 
just as little as possible. For a day, perhaps, confine 
them to the inner room ; for one or two more, according 
to season, confine them to the outer, cooler room, en- 
couraging them to exercise, by giving fine grains in an 



HANDLING AND FEEDING YOUNG FROM MACHINES 69 

inch of chaff or clover. Then, as soon as you dare, get 
them on the ground, but see that they are sheltered from 
cold wind. In summer, always provide some shelter 
from the sun, no matter what the. age of the chicks. A 
fiercely hot day may take off some of your four-months- 
old specimens, if they have no shade. A rule to cover 
all conditions might be " Reverse the conditions, for 
hot and cold weather." In cold weather, make sure 
that the heat cannot get too low ; in hot weather, watch 
the other extreme, and make sure that it cannot get too 
high. I never like to close the sliding glass window of 
the brooder entirely, unless it is where strong wind 
affects it. And I don't like the top windows of glass. 
They are seldom safe. We must have light in the 
brooders ; but it should come from side windows ; else, 
we would better raise the cover more or less, and use a 
screen to keep the chicks within, when necessary. Top 
glass radiates away too much warmth when it is cool, 
and bakes the chicks during hot sunshine. 

Any one may read, in these days, about " Old Trusty " 
Johnson, an incubator manufacturer. His one principle 
of brooding, judging by the way he harps upon it, is 
that about all a chick needs to bring him up successfully 
is to have his back kept warm ! Mr. Johnson never 
gave any explanation of the reasons — so far as I know. 
But Professor Atwood, of the West Virginia Experiment 
Station, referring to the fact that a chick, when cold, runs 
to the hen and shoves its back against her warm body, 
adds : " There is a good and sufficient reason why the chick 
warms itself this way, rather than by jumping on the 
hen's back and sticking its feet down among the feathers. 
The reason is this : A chick's lungs are very poorly 



70 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

protected, anatomically. Surrounding the spinal column 
and projecting in between the ribs, the lungs of a small 
chick are covered only by a bone so thin as to be partially 
transparent, and by the skin with its accompanying 
down. When a chick becomes cold, its lungs are apt to 
be the first organs affected, and, unless they are soon 
warmed, a cold may be contracted and the lungs may 
become inflamed or congested. In many cases, the 
congestion may become so acute that the tissue is broken 
down, with the formation of small nodules of a cheesy 
consistency. Thousands of brooder chicks die annually 
from this cause." His conclusion is that top heat, with 
little or no bottom heat, contact top heat, if possible (or, 
as next best, radiated heat from above), is a necessity to 
the best brooder system. The Prairie State Universal 
hover and the Cornell Gasoline brooder are named by 
Professor Atwood as the ones he has used which best 
meet these requirements. 

The fireless brooder can be used by any one, probably 
with greater safety than any other brooding device, 
provided it is used in a room of moderate temperature 
at night, and in sheltered, sunny positions during the 
day, if in very early spring. Any kind of a grocery 
box may be the foundation. The larger the floor space, 
the better ; but if this space is large, it is better to par- 
tition off a room at one end for the sleeping apartment ; 
while the chicks are still very small. After two weeks, 
or as soon as the chicks begin to prefer coolness to heat, 
the partition may be removed. The best cover I know 
consists of two sheets of soft cheesecloth, cut some 
inches larger than the top of the sleeping room. At its 
best, it may be padded with feathers ; or, with cotton, 



HANDLING AND FEEDING YOUNG FROM MACHINES 71 

an inch or two thick. If padded not quite to the edges 
of the sleeping box, it may be dropped to any position 
above the chicks, — of course very close while they are 
tender. Thus, it allows a bit of ventilation along its 
edges. On an extra cold night, another cushion may 
be used. If this is a bit larger than the first, it may be 




The Cornell Gasoline Brooder as used among West Virginia Daisies 



adjusted to cut off as much ventilation as is safe. The 
one rule as to this is that the chicks can stand rather 
close air when but a few days old, but become more 
subject to smothering as they grow older and the weather 
becomes warmer. 

As to brooder space, remember that tJie manufacturer 's 
space estimate fits the baby chick. As it grows, one of 
two. things must happen: to provide sufficient room, 
the space must be enlarged, or some chicks must die. 
It is for you to choose ; but not for you to whine later 



72 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

if you have chosen to believe that they " will get along 
all right " when crowded. They will not! Don 't bank 
on it. 

Many people wonder how it is that infant chicks can 
be shipped halfway across the country and arrive in 
good condition. It is because they are supplied by Nature 
with nutriment for a short period. It may even be bet- 
ter for them to be thus out of the way of a too kind 
feeder for the first two or three days. If chicks are 
kept quiet and warm, with not too much light, — in 
other words, if they are not stimulated by the conditions _ 
provided, — they will not be anxious to eat until they 
really need food. If stimulated, they will be likely to 
eat too soon, and will thus upset the work of the diges- 
tive apparatus at the beginning. 

When they begin to manifest active interest in things 
about them, it is usually time to offer feed, in small 
quantity at the first. I notice Dr. N. W. Sanborn says, 
" My chicks remain on the tray of the machine until 
thoroughly dry ; then the tray is removed, and the 
chicks stay on the floor of the incubator for a day and a 
half." His brooder, warmed to ioo degrees, with the 
floor covered with litter, then receives them and offers 
them an invitation to scratch a little. A board confines 
them within four inches of the hover, so that they can- 
not become chilled by losing their bearings. Water is 
before them, but they get no food other than the weed 
seeds and clover leaves and grit found in the litter, until 
four clays old. He says : "The yolk that was absorbed 
just before hatching supplies plenty of good food until 
the fourth day, when I begin to give cracked wheat. 
When the chicks are seven days old, a small hopper of 



HANDLING AND FEEDING YOUNG FROM MACHINES 73 

high-grade beef scrap is put before them." Dr. San- 
born's chicks are never again without this beef scrap till 
they go into the laying house. He feeds nothing but 
cracked wheat and beef scrap till the fourteenth day, 
when half the wheat is replaced by cracked corn. He 
always gives a full feed of cracked grain just before 
dark, and does not limit the cut grass or clover, lettuce, 
turnip tops, or whatever may be available as green feed, 
after the fourteenth day. He says, also, that it reduces 
the cost of raising the chicks to feed a dry mash of 
"ground grain and meat," and that it raises nice chicks, 
though not leading to so much exercise as the cracked 
grain in litter. After three weeks, the grain and meat 
are fed in separate hoppers. 

The hoppers, the water dish, and the litter may be 
outside the brooder as soon as the chicks are strong 
enough, if the conditions are favorable. If the chicks 
are kept inside, the ventilation is watched very carefully, 
the heat being kept a little in excess, in order to keep 
the windows open more. He says, " A brooder that 
can be shut up tightly is a dangerous one to put into the 
hands of a beginner." (With this I agree heartily.) He 
adds that the very best feeds will be wasted if chicks 
are allowed to get chilled or wet. He speaks of "the 
chill which is the usual cause of white diarrhoea," and 
says : " When I visit my brooders, if I find the chicks 
lying with heads just in sight, outside the felt (fringe) of 
the hover, I know the heat is all right. I much prefer 
this test to the best thermometer I can buy." Most of 
those of experience will agree with him in this. But 
a thermometer is a good help in knowing the temperature 
when the chicks are not under the hover. 



74 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

It is rather common to argue that brooder chicks are 
far better because they have no lice. Watch out, all the 
same ! 

Feeding hen-hatched chicks does not differ essentially 
from feeding machine chicks ; the real measure of quan- 
tity is the amount of exercise the chick is getting. If 
plenty, it can stand heavy feeding ; if little, the feeder 
must be careful. It is rather difficult to feed a hen and 
chicks together, as one cannot tell how much feed the 
chicks are getting. Whole corn for the hen and soft 
feed or granulated feed outside where the hen cannot 
touch it, is the way out. And hen-hatched chicks, like 
others, need feed, always available, after they once get 
safely on their feet. 



VII 

STUDYING FEEDING VALUES 

Losses from Feeding Errors — Adapting Feeds — Good 
Feeds the Basis of Hen Health — Chief Sources of 
Protein — The Common Grains — Tables of Food Val- 
ues — Grouping Feeds for Economic and Rapid Food 
Combinations for Daily Use 

The matter of right feeding presents itself with the 
first bunch of chicks or the first lot of fowls acquired. 
It has such an important bearing on the whole question 
of success or failure that it must needs be studied with 
earnest care by all who would handle stock of any kind. 
In the case of poultry, a single loss among common 
stock counts for nothing as compared with a loss among 
the larger animals, the latter often being a tragedy to 
the poor man. But, inasmuch as there are large num- 
bers of individuals in all important flocks, and necessarily 
housed in groups, it must follow that a feeding error (or 
any error) will affect the matter of productiveness at a 
multitude of points, and may determine by itself alone 
whether or not there shall be any profit whatever. 

I am not of those who would make a change in the 
feed every time the flock fails to begin laying at the exact 
period when eggs are expected. The frequent expres- 
sion, " Those hens ought to be laying," may mean, in 
essence, only that their owner ought to know more 
about his work, or have more conscience toward it. I 
would rather make a careful study of the feeding habits 
of the fowls and of the prominent classes of feeds, and 

75 



7 6 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



get from this a plain, everyday "rule to go by " that 
will serve practically as a general basis for all feeding. 
Having such a foundation, one will then be fitted to 
bring common sense to bear in any individual case of 
failure of the birds to meet expectations. 




Good Standard Poultry Feeds. Beginning at Left, Front Row : Middlings, 
Cracked Corn, Oats, Beet Pulp. Middle Row : Bran, Cut Clover, Gran- 
ulated Charcoal, Linseed Meal. Back Row : Pigeon Feed, with Many 
Peas, Corn and Oats Mixed, Commercial Mash, Commercial Scratch Feed 



It is fortunate, indeed, for the feeder on a farm that 
the family within the home and the group families in the 
farmyard subsist substantially on the' same, or related, 
foods. They are not served in the same ways ; yet the 
very fact that the fowls which are most widely noted for 
giving a liberal income are those that subsist largely on 
table scraps goes to prove clearly that the proper ration 
for our fowls is one not greatly differing from those 
which we provide for ourselves. 

Inasmuch as the chief natural foods for fowls are 
grains, grasses, and other vegetable products, the ques- 
tion at once arises : What is it, in table scraps, which 



78 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

makes them a better egg producer, on the average, 
than the same quantity of grains and grasses an naturelf 
Three points which may be mentioned are : (a) variety, 
(b) cooking, (c) the addition of meat. The breads, cakes, 
crackers, dumplings, macaronis, etc., are naught but 
cooked grains chiefly, but higher in feeding value than 
pure grains, because fiber, etc., have been taken out ; 
the cheeses, custards, starch puddings, etc., are chiefly 
eggs and milk, both animal foods ; and the meat forms 
a supply of animal food more sure than that which may 
come from insects in summer. In winter, insects, 
worms, etc., are unattainable, in many localities, even 
by fowls supposably "on range." Unless the ground 
is bare and the herbage somewhat green, " on range " 
in winter can mean little more than at liberty to go and 
come. 

We may see at a glance that here is nothing that can- 
not be obtained through the right handling of the com- 
mon, regulation poultry feeds. But, another point 
presents itself : it takes more planning to secure variety, 
and it takes more work, to provide cooked food for the 
birds, especially when flocks are large. (Caldron 
kettles are part of the regular equipment of many large 
establishments.) And, there is another consideration: 
feeds are of varying degrees of concentration and of 
palatability, and upon a clear understanding of the 
proper proportion of course fibrous feeds to those which 
are rich and smooth and concentrated, rests the value of 
any given feed mixture. Upon its palatability rests the 
amount eaten. If a feed is not good, from the hen or 
the chick point of view, it may mean poor chicks and 
non-laying hens, even though it may contain the proper 



STUDYING FEEDING VALUES 79 

elements for growth and productiveness. This is one of 
the reasons why beans cannot be fed in large proportion : 
fowls do not like them, and, when fed, they must be 
partially disguised by combining them with something 
well liked. 

It is to be understood that feeds for herbivorous 
animals must always consist almost wholly of herbage, 
and that the animal eating mixed vegetable and animal 
rations in a state of nature must always be kept severely 
on the safe side ; as a surplus of rich, animal food is 
almost sure to result in slow poisoning, undermining, and 
finally ruining the bird's health. This is a cardinal 
error, since on keeping an animal in health depends, in 
the final test, the per cent of profit. 

Men, in general, are sick, it is said, because they do 
not eat properly ; or because they are dissipated ; or be- 
cause they lack self-control in some one or more of many 
ways. If we cannot feed ourselves so as to keep in 
health, what chance is there that we can do better with 
the animals in our charge ? These animals are not 
under their own control. They should be free from all 
damage caused by lack of self-control, because they and 
their feed are under our control. But that fact may 
only make things worse ; it depends on us. Yet, as 
soon as we begin to handle them for expected profit, 
the profit question takes hold of the handling and we 
tend no longer to feed them for the best health, but for 
the best immediate production, which we presume to be 
for the best profit. 

This presumption is, to a degree, false, because 
founded on a wrong premise. The premise is that the 
feed which brings the most winter eggs — for instance 



So THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

— will bring also the most profit. This by no means al- 
ways follows. We have to consider not only whether 
or not this feed can carry the fowls forward in the most 
rugged health, but also whether or not it is the feed 
which will produce a given number of eggs at the least 
cost. All feeds are made up largely of muscle-makers, 
energy-makers, and pure fats, in varying proportions. 
It is also true of nearly all foods that it is the muscle- 
making portion, passing by the name of proteids, or 
protein (sometimes called nitrogenous feeds), that costs 
most money, weight for weight. The amount of protein 
in a feed needs to be considered, always, in rating it as 
high or low in price, in connection with the actual 
money to be paid for it. That feed at two dollars a 
hundred which contains 20 per cent of protein is. a 
much cheaper food than another at the same price which 
contains only 10 per cent. We may often see this illus- 
trated in the prices of brans and buckwheat middlings. 
I suppose we might be astounded, were we to study 
into the matter, to find how much of our table and 
household supplies are made from the wastes of other 
manufactures ! Certainly, this is even more true of our 
stock feeds. Most of them are by-products. Yet, it is 
often said that we use the poorer portions of the grains 
on our own tables and give the best to the domestic 
animals. The wheat middlings which we relegate to 
the farmyard stock is 15.6 protein (an average of 32 
samples), while spring wheat patent roller process 
"family and straight grade" flour averages less than 
1 1 per cent ; not to mention that we have taken out, 
also, much of the salts so essential to perfect health. 
In feeding fowls and chicks, any small plot of ground 



STUDYING FEEDING VALUES 



may be made to furnish vegetable growth, and many 
weeds are almost as good as more aristocratic plants. 
The grains and meat will furnish an abundance of actual 
fat and fat makers. But we need more protein, and it is 
the wastes from other manufactures which largely sup- 
ply the proteids wherewith we enrich and balance the 
coarse "roughage," in making a combination feed for 
any kind of stock. 

Just here we must feel the need of a simple table 
which will show at a glance the chief sources of the 
protein or muscle-making portion of our feeds. The 
United States government is authority for the correct- 
ness of these analyses. 

Table A. — Common High Proteid Feeds 





Protein 


Carbohy- 
drates 


Fat 


Buckwheat middlings . 


28.9 


41.9 


7-i 


Cottonseed meal . . 


42-3 


23.6 


131 


Linseed meal .... 


3^-9 


35-4 


7.9 (old process) 


Linseed meal .... 


33-2 


33-4 


3.0 (new process) 


Malt sprouts • . . . 


23.2 


48.5 


17 


Brewers 1 grains (dry) . 


19.9 


51-7 


5.6 


Gluten meal .... 


29.4 


52.4 


6-3 


Soja (or soy) beans . . 


34-o 


28.8 


16.9 


Cowpeas ...... 


20.8 


557 


1.4 



The meat meals and scraps put out by various firms 
may run anywhere from 40 per cent upward in protein. 
Milk albumen, another commercial animal feed, is also 
high in this most precious element. Gluten feed, which is 
the form now more easily procured (possibly the only 
one), may run a little lower in protein and one half higher 



82 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

in fat than the gluten meal given in the table. The 
glutens are the waste of starch manufactured from corn. 
Malt sprouts and brewers' grains are a by-product of 
malting, as their names imply. The source of cottonseed 
meal is also known from its name, but it is a by-product, 
the cotton itself being the chief aim. Buckwheat 
middlings, a good egg feed, is the refuse from manufac- 
turing buckwheat flour, and there is a buckwheat bran, 
coarser, containing more fiber, and of less feeding value. 
Linseed meal is the waste from producing linseed oil. 
The old process did not extract so much oil as the new 
process, hence the difference in analysis. A ground 
linseed is also to be had, but, as it contains over 30 per 
cent of fat, is not recommended as poultry feed. 

I desire that you will give much thought to the above 
table, because upon the proper combination of the pro- 
teids with the other food elements may rest your ultimate 
success. It is really primer work. Other things count 
strongly, but this point must be emphasized. 

The fact before mentioned that protein is often more 
costly in some one of these feeds than in the others has 
much bearing. This feature is not constant. That is, 
supply and demand or market manipulations may send 
the price of the very one you like best up to such an ex- 
tent that the protein, in which it is rich, may cost you 
possibly twice as much as the same amount of it in some 
other item from the table. If you cannot classify the 
feeds, here is an excellent chance for you to stumble 
over a pitfall. Suppose that flaxseed is very high in 
comparative price, this year, while buckwheat is very 
low. This may mean that the two by-products from 
these grains will have about the same comparative actual 



84 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

value. Will you be quick enough to change at once 
from the high-priced to the low-priced source of protein, 
and open-eyed enough to change back, or discard both, 
if next year's prices change radically ? This is the basis 
of successful and economical feeding. The by-products 
may follow the staple grains up or clown in price, or 
may increase in continuous ratio as prices go on up- 
ward, and as certain things are more universally called 
for by poultrymen who are learning fast. Some staple 
feeds are becoming almost prohibitive in price. The 
editor of Poultry, living in the far West and contending 
with heavy freight rates, finds meat scrap costing him 
five dollars a hundred. We used to get it here for less 
than two dollars ; now, in the East, we pay three dollars, 
or perhaps more. 

One cannot go far wrong in the use of the common 
grains, if these are plump, in good condition, not too new, 
and not fed to excess. The word " excess " may have 
two meanings here : one may feed to excess by giving 
more feed than the birds can digest, or he may feed any 
one element to excess by using too much of it, in pro- 
portion to the other elements. Feeding too much starch, 
proportionately to the other elements, is a very general 
mistake — possibly the one most frequently made in feed- 
ing grains for egg production. Yet when feeders learn 
that it is the protein that brings the eggs, when it is 
added, because the ordinary feeds do not contain enough 
for heavy egg production, it becomes a temptation to 
use too much protein ; which may bring on bowel diffi- 
culties or satiety. In a state of nature, the fowls ate 
many seeds (grains), it is true ; but the majority of wild- 
ing seeds are small, and the} - were well balanced by the 



STUDYING FEEDING VALUES 85 

green vegetable feed and the insects which the birds 
could usually find. Besides, they needed an egg ration 
only during a very small portion of the year, before the 
grasping hand of man " improved " them for his own 
ends. 

The matter of green feeds is so important that it must 
have a chapter to itself. When poultrymen speak of 
"balance" in a ration, they are very likely to mean 
only the proper proportions between the amounts of 
protein and carbohydrates present. But in balancing 
for perfect health, the pasturage becomes one of the 
most important items. 

A few years ago, all the advanced poultrymen were 
splitting hairs over the proper balance of the various 
elements in all the feeds used, with the emphasis, as 
stated above, on the two chief elements as to quantity. 
This phase passed, and we now hear far less about it. 
But it remains true that a rough balance between the 
muscle makers, the fats, the true energy makers and, in 
the case of partly herbivorous animals, the green feed, 
must always be maintained. The feeder needs to have 
in mind a general idea of the proportions of each in any 
ration which he may " throw together " at any time. 
These proportions must be such, first, as to keep the 
animal in rugged health ; second, they must also be such 
as will render the stock productive to the highest degree 
that can be reached with safety to the producing animal. 

The United States Department of Agriculture exists 
only for the purpose of making life more tolerable and 
work easier and more productive for all the people whom 
it reaches. It has analyzed practically all table foods 
for the good of the households, and every common grain 



86 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



and mill stuff for the benefit of the stock. These 
analyses were repeated again and again, in order to get 
a fair average of figures in the ratios. In some cases, 
over 300 samples were analyzed. Some very simple 
tabulated forms will give our eyes the information which 
they seize so much more quickly than do other servants 
of the brain : — 

Table B. U. S. Table of Average Values for Whole 
Grains 



Muscle 
Makers 


Energy 

Makers 


Fats 


10.5 


49.0 


34 


II. 9 


71.9 


2.1 


11. 8 


597 


5.0 


12.4 


69.8 


r.8 


10. 


64.5 


2.2 


9.1 


70.0 


3-6 


7-4 


79.2 


2.1 



Fiber 



Corn . . . 

Wheat . . 

Oats . . . 

Barley . . 

Buckwheat . 
Sorghum seed 

Rice . . . 



2.1 
1.8 

9-5 

2.7 

8.7 
2.6 
1.8 



Table C. U. S. Table of Average Values for Ground Grains 



Corn meal 

Oat feed 

Corn and oats (equal parts) 

Barley meal 

Wheat bran 

Wheat middlings .... 

Wheat shorts 

Rice bran 



Muscle 


Energy 


Makers 


Makers 


92 


68.7 


16.0 


59-4 


9.6 


71.9 


IO.5 


66.3 


15.4 


53-9 


15.6 


60.4 


14.9 


56.8 


12. 1 


49.9 



Fats 



Fiber 



1.9 

6.1 

5.8 (est.) 

6.5 

9.0 

4.6 

7-4 

9-5 



STUDYING FEEDING VALUES 87 

What is scientifically called " nitrogen-free-extract," 
I have headed simply " energy makers." These analyses 
are for "fresh, or air-dry " materials. 

Please note that in the mind of each feeder need to 
be niches wherein are kept the several food groups. 
One group is the clovers, the key interest of which is 
that, when dried, they run from 10 to 15 per cent pro- 
tein, white clover being the highest, the cowpeas (a near 
relative) next. These also furnish necessary roughage, 
averaging from above one fifth to above one fourth fiber. 
A second group is the high-protein grains, those running 
n and 12 per cent and upward. Special localities have 
shown the higher averages. Among these are Tennessee, 
Virginia, Colorado, and Indiana wheat (see Government 
Handbook), Colorado wheat, under 50 analyses, aver- 
aging above 13 per cent. Massachusetts sweet corn 
runs well toward 13 per cent protein. A third group is 
the high-fiber stuffs, including buckwheat, soy beans, 
cowpeas, rye, and oats ; barley meal, buckwheat bran, 
and malt sprouts are extra high, because the mill stuffs 
and wastes contain more than their natural proportion 
of hulls. Such poor stuffs as rice hulls and cottonseed 
hulls are more than one third rough fiber, — the latter, in- 
deed, nearer one half, — while corncob meal is nearly 
as high. These are, I consider, entirely too rough and 
coarse to use as feed for fowls, even though they average 
above 4 per cent of protein content. 

An important group is that of the extra high-protein 
vegetable products, most of which are mill stuffs, ground 
and sometimes sold in combinations. This group will 
include, from the cereals, gluten feed, linseed meal (new 
process preferred because containing less fat), buck- 



88 THE BEGINNER IX POULTRY 

wheat middlings. Cottonseed meal, ground peas, and 
ground beans belong here ; most of these analyze be- 
tween 1 8 and 33 per cent protein, the highest, cottonseed 
meal, running above 42 per cent. The animal meals go 
still higher. These are good friends to the poultryman, 
but sometimes deceitful, so that he needs to know all 
that is to be learned about them, and to be able to group 
and interchange them at will. His great economic 
struggle will be in connection with them, also, let it be 
remembered. 

It will not do to jump at the conclusion that cotton- 
seed meal, because vegetable and high in protein, is 
therefore the best feed to be had. A correspondent who 
ranks with the Beginners writes me that he has discov- 
ered through experience one fact, viz., that cottonseed 
meal is the cheapest source of protein. In the same 
letter he inquires how to treat rheumatism in his stock 
( probably legweakness!), failing utterly to connect this 
reliance on cottonseed meal with its legitimate outcome. 
One who feeds this needs to erect the red flag of " dan- 
ger ahead" on the bin or barrel containing the feed 
And especially is this the case with the Beginner. Some 
experts say that cottonseed meal is never safe to feed 
young animals; others believe that good judgment may 
make its use safe. Speaking especially of cattle feeding, 
the New Jersey Station (Bulletin 174) has said: "The 
injurious effects which have sometimes been reported 
from the use of this highly concentrated food have, in 
many cases, at least, been due to feeding it by itself or 
without being intermixed with any other foodstuff. 
When it is thoroughly incorporated with other foods, 
especially those of a starchy nature, it can safely be 




A Peanut Plant. In the South, the Peanut Furnishes Valuable Feed for Fowls, 
High in Protein Averaging nearly Twenty-Six Per Cent 



9° 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



used in the quantity indicated (4.5 pounds daily per cow) 
without injurious effects." Two hundred five-pound 
hens equal in weight one thousand-pound cow; which 
fact may give us a basis for feeding this meal safely to 
fowls. 

Concerning protein values, Professor H. R. Lewis of the 
New Jersey Experiment Station said, in 191 2, in a plat- 
form talk to poultry keepers of the state : " Protein is the 
feed most expensive to buy, most difficult to produce on 
the farm, and which we absolutely must have. Its place 
cannot be taken by carbohydrates or fats. Meat and 
bone, milk and insects, best supply it. One pound of 
digestible protein to each 100 pounds of live weight is 
about right (to feed). Digestibility is an important fea- 
ture. The three objects of feeding fowls are mainte- 
nance, flesh production, and egg production, and the 
proper food is determined by the product desired." 

As a compact table for making up rations for any de- 
sired purpose, Professor Lewis showed the following, 
on a chart : — 



Finished Products below contain: 





Water 


Ash 


Protein 


Carbohy- 
drates and 
Fat 


Hen 

Pullet 

Capon .... 
Fresh egg . . . 


54.8 

55-4 
41.6 
65.7 


3-8 

34 

37 

12.2 


21.6 
21.2 
I94 

11. 4 


17 
18 

33-9 
8.9 



The feeds which best supply the elements needed in 
the product are the ones to be chosen. Comparison 
study of these tables is urged. 



STUDYING FEEDING VALUES 
Food Materials below contain : 



91 





Water 


Ash 


Protein 


Carbohy- 
drates AND 
Fat 


Corn 


11.6 


i-5 


7.0 


76.4 


Oats 


1 1.0 


3-o 


9.2 


56.8 


Meat scrap . 


10.7 


4.1 


66.2 


311 


Green clover 


71.0 


2.1 


2.9 


16.4 



VIII 

A STUDY OF JUICY FEEDS 

The Value of Juicy or " Green " Feeds — Values Tabu- 
lated for Quick Information — Practical Value of a 
Knowledge of Water Content, etc. — Sprouting Grain 
and Cultivating Green Crops — Fodder Stuffs — Onions 
— Weeds — Poultry and Fruit 

Upon a just appreciation of the value of green feeds, 
in the proper proportion, must rest the success of the 
many who must yard their fowls ; and this especially 
when the space is limited. No matter how good the care 
otlierwise, highly concentrated foods like grains, millstuffs, 
and meat tvill eventually ruin the flocks, unless the supply 
of green stuff be liberal. The fowl on good range which 
receives a bit of supplementary feed once a day is a free 
and independent entity and is not very likely to get into 
feeding difficulties of any kind during the open season, 
unless she is accidentally choked or poisoned. At the 
north, during the period of compulsory housing, she is 
no better off than her near neighbor, the yarded town 
hen. She may fare even worse, from the fact that her 
owner has not hitherto been obliged to learn how to 
handle her in confinement. On the farms where fowls 
range free during most of the year, so little thought is 
given to winter care that the winter season is often 
merely a season of existence, a period of unhappy wait- 
ing for decent conditions to arrive with the spring. This 
is one strong reason why so many farm fowls lay no 
winter eggs. 

92 



A STUDY OF JUICY FEEDS 



93 



For all housed, or closely yarded stock fowls, then, we 
may m.ake this rule : The thrift of the birds, as far as 
feeds may affect it, will be in exact proportion to the 
balance of the ration with the " green" feeds, juicy and 
dry. The hays and especially the clovers, dry, form an 
important item in winter feeding, and give bulk without 
furnishing so much water as to overdo the matter. The 
word "balance," in this case, may be taken to refer not 
so much to actual, comparative contents of the fresh, 
vegetable foods which we are now especially to consider, 
but rather to a certain effect upon the bird which is due 
to the use of vegetable juices, etc. The table below may 
show how largely made up of water the fresh vegetable 
growths commonly fed to fowls — or which might easily 
be fed to fowls — are : 



Red beets . . . 

Potatoes . . . . 

Carrots . . . . 
Cabbage . 

Onions . . . . 
Squashes . . 

Lettuce leaves . . 
Oat fodder . 
Sweet corn kernels 

Corn fodder . . . 

Sweet cornstalks . 
Maize silage 

Cowpeas . . . . 

Red clover . . . 
Orchard grass . 



Protein 



i-5 

2.1 

1. 15 

2.4 
1.4 
.66 
2.27 

3-4 

2.88 

1.8 

i-7 

i-7 

2.4 

4-4 
2.6 



Ash 



1.4 
I 
I 
1.4 

.6 

.41 
1. 71 
2.5 

.56 

1.2 

1. 25 
I.4 

i-7 

2.1 

2 



Water 



94 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Apples, as a regular supply, are followed by excellent 
results in the egg basket. They are, of course, well up 
in water content, and the sugar in the juice is more than 
one tenth. In Rhode Island Greenings, which are es- 
pecially fine apples, the analysis is given as 11.97 P er 
cent. Sweet apples, strangely enough, are given as being 
a little lower, but only a fraction of one per cent. Pears 
have not quite 9 per cent of sugar. Most of these figures 
are averages. Samples vary endlessly. For instance, 
oat fodders, in five samples only, varied from 1.5 per cent 
of ash to 4.2 per cent. Though all were rated as " fresh, 
air-dry," some would doubtless be nearer ripening than 
others. At least, this might easily account for a consid- 
erable variation. To call attention to the difference be- 
tween the analyses of green fodders and dried, I mention 
here that Red clover hay is given as containing 1 1.33 per 
cent of moisture, 2.07 of nitrogen, with 9.51 per cent of 
phosphoric acid and potassium oxide. A rough general 
rule might be that air-dried samples of grasses, etc., 
analyze about three times as high in protein, etc., as the 
green samples. In winter, a combination of the cut 
clovers, clover chaff, etc., works well in connection with 
a juicy vegetable like cabbage or mange 1-wurtzels. 

In order to grasp the practical value of this knowledge, 
in its application to supplying green feed to yarded stock, 
we need to fix our minds especially on two facts : (a) the 
wastes cannot be swept from the animal system without 
water in abundance ; (&) the eggs which are to pay for a 
hen's keeping cannot be produced by yarded birds with- 
out supplied water in abundance, since the average egg 
is itself 73.7 percent water, and the maximum amount is 
almost 75 per cent. 



A STUDY OF JUICY FEEDS 95 

If we were to put this into the form of a logical con- 
clusion, as in school, we should finish : " Therefore, in 
order to insure healthy fowls and a maximum product, 
no poultryman can afford to allow the drinking water 
to evaporate into thin air in summer or to congeal into 
ice in winter. For, drinking water should be always 
accessible to the fowls." 

Another imperative "therefore" is: Therefore, no 
poultryman who wishes his fowls to pay a profit can 
afford not to provide them either with liberty and nu- 
tritious range, or else with abundance of juicy vegetable 
growth in good variety, when under yarded conditions. 

A familiar example of making use of what one has 
lies in the case of unsalable potatoes. If these can be 
chopped till they are easy to swallow, and mixed 
with a little bran, they may form an occasional ration 
of which the fowls will become very fond and will add 
both to their thrift and their productiveness. Beets of 
any kind, cut in half and skewered against the wall at 
one foot from the ground, or fed in a protected trough, 
often prove reliable " first aids to health," and also to 
productiveness. The beet pulp — a gray, chippy look- 
ing stuff — which is a waste product from the manu- 
facture of beet sugar, is a notably good feed for those 
who must buy. It comes in large bags. We have paid 
from $1, when it was less known, to $1.35 at the present 
time. The Experiment Stations say that, although it 
does not analyze high in any essential element, all stock 
thrives better with it than without it. 

A few hours' soaking will metamorphose a half-peck 
of it into a half bushel, possibly, of attractive, juicy beet 
shavings. The animals unite in decidedly favorable 



96 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

testimony as to the palatability of the mess. It is best 
fed, I think, in connection with one third its bulk of 
clover meal or chaff and the same bulk of bran, with 
corn meal and wheat middlings enough to form a rather 
firm and somewhat sticky mash. If the meal can be 
well scalded, it will behave much better. One may add 
meat scrap in any desired quantity, up to the 10 per 
cent, if the meat is to be fed with the mash. My own 
preference would be to place the meat, mixed with a 
very little clover meal, in feeding racks by itself, leav- 
ing it before the fowls all the time, or for a specified 
portion of each day, the covers being closed during the 
" close hours." 

The one ideal way to handle small lots of birds which 
are kept for fancy breeding and which must be con- 
stantly segregated from others is to have two long runs 
sloping gently away from each pen. Openings should 
admit the fowls to either, as the owner desires. While 
the fowls occupy one, the other is seeded and growing 
a crop of green stuff, into which they may be turned as 
soon as it is well established. As they often trample 
and foul more than they eat, it is better, for a time, to 
let them into the fresh yard for stated periods, perhaps 
an hour at night and another in the morning. As the 
growth hardens, they may occupy the yard all day, 
when the companion yard is to be sown. 

If fowls are not to be kept in separate small flocks, 
yet must be restrained, it is better to have one yard 
entirely surround the long house, or the series of colony 
houses, in order that a few furrows of earth may be 
sown and turned or cultivated every second day, oats 
being thus buried very liberally beneath the surface. 



A STUDY OF JUICY FEEDS 



97 



This will give the fowls plenty of green feed, as it 
starts into sprouting and growth. Some have as- 
sured me that barley is even better, as it tillers more 
abundantly; i.e. each seed throws out more stalks, when 
it lies long enough to get a real start. The New Jersey 
Station, after experimenting with sprouted oats, wheat, 
and buckwheat, announced that in every case oats pro- 
duced most pounds and made most gain. 




Sprouted Oats, Tops Four Inches High, Making Real Green Feed For Yarded Birds 

In the case of the yarded and segregated small flocks 
of high-priced birds, it can probably be made to pay to 
bury grains in the soft earth by hand power. The fowls 
get the needed exercise actively, and the needed juicy 
morsels at one and the same time, while the owner is 
saved the effort of growing and handling the sprouted 
grain. The deeper it is buried, the longer it lies moist, 



98 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

and the better it will be when the fowls eventually un- 
earth it. This also gives the fowls the constant oppor- 
tunity for occupation and, one might say, recreation of 
the fowl kind. This means much in the better health 
of the flocks. 

Much can be done in growing rape, large-head let- 
tuces and cabbages in very rich, cool ground, in plots 
alongside the chicken yards if it is possible to find the 
right soil there. A yard that has been used as a fowl 
run is good. The condition of the soil makes a great 
variation in this class of feeds. I have seen soils kept 
virtually bare by the presence and ranging of a small 
flock ; in others of similar area rich and well grassed, 
the ranging of an equal number of birds made little im- 
pression in wearing away the thick, grassy turf. Here 
is variation in opportunity, and variation, be sure, in 
product, because of natural variations in conditions. The 
chief point is that the birds must really get what they 
need. The easiest zvay is the best, if fully feasible. One 
who has choice is throwing away his lead if he do not 
select the most favorable conditions, where Nature is his 
best help. If this cannot be done, the next best thing 
is to provide the best conditions as cheaply and easily 
as it can be well done. 

There is a very easily raised product for early summer 
use in the fancy curled mustards. The fowls do not 
like them as well as they do lettuce, but on some soils 
they will furnish more feed, almost equally tender. They 
should not be allowed to go to seed, as they might then 
become a bad weed, like other mustards. These are so 
beautifully curled and crested that they are about equal 
to parsley for garnishing, and to some palates they make 



A STUDY OF JUICY FEEDS 99 




Heads of Pearl and Hungarian Millets. Plants and Seeds Make Good Poultry 

Feed 

a most acceptable source of greens. For this purpose, 
and as greens for the poultry, they need to be used while 



IOO THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

rather young and crisp. The frilly growth makes them 
easy for the fowls to attack. Ease of division is quite 
a point of advantage in a green stuff that is neither 
rooted in the ground nor cut fine before being supplied. 

Such fodder stuffs as sorghum, the sweet millets, and 
especially sweet corn are of especial value as supplied 
green feed for geese, when this method of handling is 
necessary. The geese delight in the sweet cornstalks, 
which are better when slender and young. These are 
equally good for hens and ducks, if they can be made 
fine enough. When corn is planted more thinly and 
allowed to ear, the milky ears, just a little older than for 
the table, furnish one of the most attractive and whole- 
some feeds for either chicks or fowls. 

Those who can raise onions will find them one of the 
cheapest green feeds available for chickens and any fowls 
not laying. Mr. John Robinson says that cooked onions 
may be fed even to layers, in quantities not above five 
pounds to a hundred birds. Too heavily fed, they taint 
the eggs with their penetrating odor. These are most 
excellent to give zest to the mashes and thrift to the 
fowls. It is well, with these, as with any new offerings, 
to mix them well, in small proportion, with some well- 
liked ration, until the fowls form a liking for them. 
Both the chicks and the older fowls become ravenous 
for onions, cooked cabbage, and the like, once they have 
learned how good they really are. 

During a portion of the year, the fowls can be kept in 
pretty good health with little green feed aside from what 
may be supplied in certain favored weeds. There are 
reasons besides the mere flavor why the fowls will eat 
some supplied stuffs and reject other sorts. The pale 



A STUDY OF JUICY FEEDS 



IOI 



green somewhat ragged "pigweed" grows quickly, is 
tender, and offers itself in natural mouthfuls. The same 
is true of purslane, the "pusley " of old-fashioned folk. 
Tenderness is the first point with such natural supplies. 
Summer grass is first favorite, and large tufts of it pull 
up easily when the soil is wet and soft. A few geese, if 
yarded, will devour several small armfuls daily. 




Pearl Millet, Seven Feet High : Makes Shade and Feed for Poultry 

Most poultrymen who raise yarded stock aim to grow 
fruit trees in the yards. It is almost the only rational 
way, since shade is such a vital necessity to the fowls. 
All waste fruit forms good feed for the poultry, and the 
ground pays a double profit, the only difficulty being in 
protecting the trees while small, and wiring them off as 
they come to the ripening period each year. With 
a small family orchard, individual trees can be wired off 



102 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

without moving the flocks at all. Some have said that 
fruit trees grown in poultry yards were sappy, brittle, 
and short-lived. When this is true, I think it is chiefly 
because of lack of balance in the fertilizer. The drop- 
pings from the fowls make the ground rich in nitrogen, 
the most expensive part of a fertilizer, but may leave it 
lacking in potash. But potash alone can be bought by 
the hundred pounds. Either muriate of potash, or sul- 
phate of potash is a good fertilizer for fruit trees, and 
would solve the problem of some of those barren orchards 
which grow for twenty years (owners have told this 
story) without fruiting. These potashes are very con- 
centrated, and a little goes a long way. Some California 
orchardists say that nitrate of soda alone will be all that is 
needed in some soils. This shows its effect very quickly, 
and would please all for this reason. I use it on early 
vegetables to hasten maturity, but have not tried it on 
trees. Muriate and sulphate of potash have given us good 
results on peaches, pears, plums, and apples, in connection 
with poultry droppings distributed by the fowls them- 
selves. The yards are plowed each season, and cultivated 
later ; more than once, some years. This is chiefly to 
sweeten the ground for the fowls. The potash helps here, 
also. If I had wood ashes, I should probably use those, 
as all farmers do. But in buying, I prefer to buy the potash 
"straight," as wood ashes are said to vary much in quality. 
I think it should appeal to the common sense of all, 
that, if one does not want spongy, sappy trees which pro- 
duce too much foliage and fruit of second quality and infe- 
rior quantity, it behooves him to supply all the great, impor- 
tant elements needed by the trees ; even as he must furnish 
all the important elements in the food for his fowls. 



IX 

HOW TO PREVENT DISEASE 

The Difficult Disease Problem — Cutting Off the Sources 

— Common Percentages of Loss — The Vital Question 

— Active Agencies of Prevention — Analogy Between 
Man and Lower Animals — Exercise — Patent Feeders 

— Ventilation — Disinfection — Patent Cures — White 
Diarrhoea 

The " Disease Problem " is one of the most difficult 
of all his puzzles, for the Beginner. It is usually far 
more difficult for a man than for a woman poultry 
keeper, since she finds it rather easy to relate her 
knowledge of human, physical ills, to those of the out- 
door friends under her care. Since the puzzle is such 
a difficult one, and often so endless in its various forms, 
it is quite the part of good sense to inquire whether 
there be not some way to cut off the physical ills of 
fowls at their source. 

It might be rather shocking for me to affirm, outright, 
that this source is, for the most part, man himself. But 
it is quite largely true, because most of the ills of poul- 
trydom are ills relating to unnatural conditions. And 
the birds cannot apply the remedies which instinct 
would suggest, because they are not free agents. We 
might look at a single fact concerning man himself, to 
find whether or not he is fitted to deal rightly with fowls 
in matters pertaining to health. One of the most widely 
experienced physicians and surgeons of our day, Dr. J. 

103 



104 THE BEG INNER IN POULTRY 

H. Kellogg, states that we have an average of about 
three million sick persons in this country, all the time, 
and that, of. this number, just about one half arc need- 
lessly ill, because of dissipation, or excess, or overeat- 
ing, etc. If this is the best man can do for himself, 
what hope is there that he will do better with his 
stock ? Just this, it seems to me : that he can restrain 
his stock from excess and lack of judgment in eating, 
when he cannot (so he says) restrain himself. In rig- 
orous selection of conditions, and in sanitation, then, 
lies man's power to bury the great problem, instead of 
burying his ailing fowls. 

Some of the older poultrymen, speaking out of bitter 
experience, insistently proclaim that the ax is the best 
medicine. But this is made to refer to individual cases 
of disease, which are constantly cropping out in some 
flocks. It may be only putting the matter in a different 
form to say that culling out weak specimens between 
breeding seasons is the best way to raise the average 
health of the flock. These come to the ax, or its equiv- 
alent, of course. But in the case of culling only as in- 
dividuals develop disease, throughout the season, one is 
very likely to raise progeny from some of the weaker 
fowls, to take their places and to inherit their woes an- 
other season. The method of allowing none but lusty 
individuals to go into the stock flock at all, cuts off at 
the outset the possibility of getting descendants from 
the weaklings. It is the only sensible and sure way. 

This is not saying that one will thus cut off all possi- 
bility of disease. But it makes more difference than 
the breeder who has not tried it could well believe. It 
is very common, in average flocks, to lose four or five 



HOW TO PREVENT DISEASE 



ICK 



hens a year out of seventy-five or a hundred. Some 
have even reported losses as high as between 20 and 
30 per cent, through experiences common to all flocks in 
the regular course of living, such as the molt, etc. The 
point one needs certainty on is, how much disease ought 
to be expected, under the best care and conditions ; how 
much of the average loss can be warded off ? Fowls 
pushed by means of stimulants to the very limit of ca- 
pacity for egg production must, of necessity, show some 
breakdowns. The vital question is, " How many ? " 




Cornell Water Fount, with Protecting Cover Removed. Clean, Cool Drinking 
Water Wards Off Disease 



I think no poultryman of any prominence exists who 
does not lose some birds. If working for records, the 
loss, which may be called almost unavoidable, will come 
from trouble with the egg organs. In the famous lay- 
ing contests at the Agricultural College at Hawkesbury, 
Australia, some hens died, even when kept in lots of six, 
and carefully selected in advance for special test. We 
can know the facts about these things only from expe- 
rience, — our own or that which others report. I do 



106 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

know of one large firm which reports a loss of not more 
than one per cent, among its thousands of layers during 
the entire year. This may be regarded as the ideal 
toward which every poultry raiser should struggle. But 
only the best of selective and preventive work can bring 
any poultry raiser close to this ideal. 

The owners of this great farm, the size of whose op- 
erations may be indicated by the fact that it places, on 
occasion, orders for 20,000 hatching eggs with one firm, 
have described their system somewhat in detail. One 
year, out of a lot of several thousand cockerels, 1500 
were selected as the most desirable. This bunch was 
reduced, later, to 1000. When they were about half 
grown, a final and more exacting selection threw out 
one half of those remaining. On the same basis (that 
of saving about one in eight as breeders), the farm pro- 
ducing 100 young cockerels would keep the best dozen 
only for breeders. On some farms, under small han- 
dlers, selection is much more rigid than this ; only the 
best two or three raised being reserved to head breed- 
ing pens. Selection being first for vigor, then for type 
and beauty and prolificacy and all other desired quali- 
ties, the few reserved, if from good parentage, ought to 
be almost perfection as far as the eye can judge. (Fur- 
ther discussion of selective breeding will be found in 
the chapter on Line Breeding.) 

Our first and keenest inquiry, here, must be directed 
toward finding out the active agencies which enter into 
practical prevention ; or, on the other hand, into the 
spread of disease. The great preventive agencies are 
good food, proper exercise, fresh air and the sunshine 
which is its complement and a disinfectant as well, 



HOW TO PREVENT DISEASE 



107 



chemical disinfectants, etc. ; the great disease-producing 
and disease-spreading agency is germ contagion. 

We have the specific discussion of feeding principles 
in another chapter. 
It seems a very 
simple proposition 
to state that all 
necessary exercise 
may be provided 
through the method 
of administeringthe 
feed, and furnish- 
ing abundant litter. 
But the litter prob- 
lem, simple as it 
looks, is a perennial 
problem to poultry- 
men , chiefly because 
most materials tend 
to mat together 
when slightly moist 
and trampled, so 
that the grains fail 
to become buried in 
the litter, and its 
reason-to-be is thus 
not justified. I find 
that it helps one 
toward correct prac- 
tice to know the rea- 
sons for any suggested method. To be sure, the bene- 
ficial result of exercise for any animal should not need 




A "Turn-stile" Automatic Grain Feeder, 
ercise Makes for Health 



Ex- 



Io8 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

to be explained to any one who understands animals. 
And, as man is himself an animal, he should be able to 
reason out the value of exercise to all other animals. 
But, I think he tends to forget that he is an animal, on 
the physical side, and thus often fails to draw the analogy 
between himself and the lower animals. To be sure, 
fowls are not, in all things, like the four-footed animals, 
yet the main organs — the bodily engine parts — are much 
the same for all. 

Exercise for fowls can be encouraged in varying 
ways. To provide litter for scratchers and water privi- 
leges for swimmers is the easiest and quickest way to 
insure exercise. Running, flying, scratching, and swim- 
ming are Nature's methods of exercising her winged and 
scratching and swimming birds. Flight, the poultry- 
man must usually curtail more or less to suit his own 
interest. It follows justly that he must take a bit of 
extra trouble to provide other exercise for his fowls. 

There are several patent feeders, especially designed 
to induce the fowls to scatter small grains by their own 
activities. This they do by tilting or jarring the recep- 
tacle containing feed, and the busier they become, the 
more feed they get. The receptacle is usually hung 
two or three feet above the birds, at least. The existence 
of these ought, it seems to me, to stimulate poultry 
feeders to whom such a method of feeding would be 
helpful, to invent for home use devices whereby the 
grains might be thus scatteringly given down. All the 
more when the poultryman provides in large quantities, 
expecting to replenish containers only at intervals of a 
week or so. It is quite necessary for those who thus 
depend on providing feed at long intervals to have a 



HOW TO PREVENT DISEASE 



109 



fixed, habitual systematic interval of inspection of feed 
boxes. Otherwise, the birds will surely be left, at times, 
without the proper supply of food. 

One of these patent devices for " little and often " 
feeding of grains is shown in the cut. A modification, 
which is, I think, of recent invention, provides a set of 
feeders for each and every pen in a continuous house, 
all attached to a rod running the length of the building; 
each having a cut-off, and all being operated from one 
point by means of simple gearing. 

Although a few of the teachers are going back to the 
long-discarded plan of warming the poultry houses arti- 
ficially, — for the Mediterranean breeds, at least, — the 
great majority are swinging toward the cloth-front house 
or the open, sunny shed, for daytime housing of layers, at 
least. It has always been found difficult to ventilate 
closed houses properly without admitting drafts. Prob- 
ably the best device for this purpose is the overhead, 
diffused air ventilation gained by passing the air admitted 
above through loosely laid straw. (Possibly this will 
not seem to some a strictly correct use of the term 
"diffused.") To break the stream of air into small 
enough particles so that it shall not come upon the fowls 
as a draft, is the key to poultry-house ventilation. A 
method open to all who have built a high enough house 
is to cut a small door in the gable peak on each end. 
A very loose ceiling, laid just high enough overhead to 
permit the easy passage of the attendant, will be suffi- 
cient to support straw, which is then filled loosely in 
above the ceiling. The ventilating doors may be made 
to slide, and can then be adjusted at any time to meet 
prevailing weather conditions. 



no 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



The one great agent or force now relied upon to 
combat contagion is disinfection. Sunlight disinfection 
is best of all, and should be always operative at danger 
points. Disinfectant material is sometimes strewn dry 
upon board and flooring surfaces ; it is sometimes added 
to thin whitewash ; it is sprayed into incubators and 
over eggs and upon mucous surfaces when these can be 

reached ; it is given as a solution 
in the drinking water; it is fur- 
nished the fowls in the form of 
tablets to be taken in internal 
doses, individually. The best of 
the M. D.'s are coming more 
and more to order first a pur- 
gative, to be followed by a bowel 
disinfectant, for nearly all dis- 
eases. So many and such varied 
diseases are now being laid to 
the door of incomplete digestion 
(either of stomach or of bowels) 
that it seems quite the part of 
folly not to learn the theory and 
the " first aid methods " of modem medical practice and 
to apply them to daily life. This may be, first, in the 
use of proper family foods and proper ways of eating ; 
second, in applying these laws as far as is practicable to 
the care of the various animals under our care. The 
D. V. M.'s are following close upon the methods of the 
M. D.'s and both are using applied common sense freely. 
Some of the best poultrymen rely largely upon air- 
slaked lime for disinfection. Thrown upon roosts and 
floors and into coops and nests, common testimony rates 




Fowl's Gizzard, Abnormal 
through Disease 



HOW TO PREVENT DISEASE III 

it as a reliable preventive of much disease. Because 
fowls have sometimes been injured by eating lumps of 
lime, others are shy of using this cheap aid. The 
remedy is — not to distribute lumps. Whitewash is a 
universal cleanser and purifier, and its whiteness has also 
a value in the fowl house in the reflection of light. 

The roup medicines, the diarrhoea and cholera medi- 
cines, the applications for chicken pox and mangelike 
affections, depend largely for their curative virtues on 
the disinfectants which they contain. The lice paints 
most popular contain such ingredients. The whole 
round of preventive — and, one might add, of curative 
practice as well- — revolves about the use of disinfec- 
tants. 

Even for "gapes" (the choking caused by thread- 
like red worms in the windpipe) the only practical, im- 
mediate general treatment, when the runs cannot be 
changed to fresh ones, is to spray these runs with a not 
too strong disinfectant. Twenty years ago, I raised 
chicles on thoroughly infected ground with practically 
no loss, by spraying the soil with disinfectants. 

It is rather safe to say that the most widely reaching 
scourge of the modern poultry yard, " white diarrhoea," 
in its several forms, has absolutely no chance of cure 
unless it be along the line of preventive and disinfective 
treatment. Scientists making a special study of this 
disease have, up to 191 2, acknowledged that the only 
advance toward successful treatment lay in the use of 
disinfectants. The treatment was applied to the eggs, 
the incubators and the brooders, the excreta, etc. ; and, 
even with this, the breeding of rugged, outdoor-grown 
stock was named as the best surety against the disease. 



112 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

During the investigations of Professors Graham and 
Rettger in Connecticut, while seeking the germ of white 
diarrhoea, it was found, not only that the dead chicks 
and the living chicks carried this germ, but that the 
eggs also, and some of the breeding stock, were infected 
with it. Some one said recently that he knew of 
growers who, last year, lost as high as 1200 out of 1500 
chicks hatched. I count it absolute folly even to hope 
to succeed with poultry under such conditions ; and as 
absolute folly to expect to produce good chicks from 
hens or eggs which harbor these destructive germs. 

Several years ago, Editor Robinson, in an article on 
the waning health and productiveness of poultry, said 
that some mysterious cause was at work, lowering the 
vitality of our flocks in general, year by year. He 
seemed to have no inkling as to the real cause ; but I 
do not think it is necessary to look farther than the 
unnatural conditions under which very much of our 
breeding stock is kept, to find this undermining cause. 
It is exceedingly difficult, even with the best of han- 
dling, to hold breeding stock in permanent confinement, 
or to raise stock for future breeders in confinement, and 
still to bring to maturity the best of vigorous, well- 
grown progeny from such stock. It means the use of 
every device known to make unnatural conditions to 
approach the natural, and, in addition, it means con- 
tinued selection for vigor and constitution. Theoreti- 
cally, the great " first aid to the injured" would be fresh 
blood from stock raised on juicy, fully nutritious range; 
but, practically, the fancier finds this too detrimental in 
other directions. 



X 

MOLDS, SMUTS, AND BACTERIA 

Mysterious Enemies — Preventive Forethought — Using 
One's Records — Blocking Out a System — Aspergillosis 

— Breathing Organs of Fowls — Poor Curing and Mold 

— Handicaps of the City-bred Farmer and Poultryman 

— Studying ground Stuffs — Milk and Bacteria 

Not only every Beginner, but virtually every worker 
with poultry, meets, somewhere along the road, mys- 
terious enemies to his fullest success. These cause 
him infinite anxiety and questioning. One may fight an 
open foe with a good will and with courage ; but the 
secret enemy kills courage; and even hope, sometimes. 
These invisible foes are usually to be grouped under 
the three heads — molds, smuts, and bacteria. Their 
habits are such that they may affect whole broods, whole 
flocks; they may spread destruction like a pestilence, 
when the knowledge of a single fact might have made 
the worker victorious over them. Their power for wide- 
spread destruction rests in two items : they are invisible 
to the naked eye, or virtually so ; and, they are often in 
the food. 

A promising brood, with which the utmost pains have 
been taken, may have reached almost the age of safety, 
in thrift and happiness. Suddenly one or two are 
noticed to be ailing, and, before the owner has had 
much more than time to wonder what can be the trouble, 
nearly all are showing signs of distress. In a day, it 
may be, — or two days, — or a week, all have " dropped 
i 113 



il 4 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

off." It is utterly discouraging, and the chief pull on 
the courage is the fact that, so long as he does not know 
what the cause may be, the worker has no warrant that 
the next lot will do any better. There are so many un- 
expected happenings all along the way, that the poultry 
worker must, above all things, be a student and an 
observer of conditions. If he does not know, he must 
learn how to diagnose every difficulty that may arise. 
The very best teachers, full of eagerness to impart the 
wisdom of which they are supposed also to be so full, 
cannot tell him everything, in detail. A principle is 
worth more to him than a hundred details, if he have 
judgment; if lacking this, he is not the one to succeed 
soon with poultry. 

There are many methods which can be described ; 
good ones, and successful. Every novice asks first 
and most insistently for methods. It takes a big book 
to give methods, when a very small one would give 
the underlying principles. But, after a flock is acci- 
dentally poisoned, or is gripped by some hidden foe 
of which one knows nothing, neither methods nor prin- 
ciples are of much avail. The key to the situation is 
foreknowledge, and that is of no avail after the crisis 
is upon one. Its work must be all put in as preventive 
detail, or preventive principle. It is just at this point 
that most inexperienced poultry raisers and very many 
who have been in the work for years, make their worst 
errors ; they do not exercise forethought. This seems 
a difficult thing to learn to do. Somehow, the experi- 
ence and the advice of others who have made mistakes, 
cannot be adopted and adapted in advance, by learners 
in the way. When these later workers have fallen into 



MOLDS, SMUTS, AND BACTERIA 115 

the slough, when they have made the same mistakes, 
then, and then only, does the advice gain the ear of 
the inner consciousness, so to speak. 

It is just because this is the average habit of mind, 
that we so often say that it needs a person of syste- 
matic mind, and one who can exercise forethought, to 
care for poultry most successfully, and with the least 
charges "to experience." Consider that these are 
often the heaviest charges against the industry, in 
specific instances. These are the real cause of small 
profits, and of losses, when these last are met. And 
it is because one can go over the work and put his 
finger on the point of loss and failure so much better 
if he has kept accounts, or a diary of work, that these 
are urged. They are the beginnings of system ; but 
they are not more than beginnings, unless the worka: 
go over them carefully at the beginning of a new season, 
and find out exactly what they teach, and then take 
steps to do better. An irresponsible person will not, 
or cannot, do these things; hence, such a one is bound 
to be more or less of a failure as a poultry raiser. 

The above may seem to be a digression. To me, it 
is not ; because, it leads to the chief point I wish to 
impress, viz., the necessity of forethought. How much 
feed shall I be likely to want ? What is likely to be 
the capital required for this ? What is likely to be the 
normal loss ? The normal product ? Where will dis- 
ease and disaster be likely to sneak in on me ? In 
other words, one needs to go over the whole work, 
preferably on paper, and block out a system of han- 
dling every important item of it, remembering that, 
where arbitrary figures are to be used, it is the normal, 



n6 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

and not the possible, that should be taken as a basis of 
expectation. I saw a statement, recently, that just this 
fault belittles nearly all the work published from the 
Experiment Stations : that they are too prone to give 
favorable figures, but leave unnoted items of expense, 
such as labor, etc. Possibly the critic did not consider 
how difficult it might be to allow a fair amount for 
labor, since those who do experimental work need to 
have superior help (at superior prices, probably); and 
apportionment to specific jobs may also be difficult. In 
fact, it seems to be a human failing to ignore the difficul- 
ties of " the other fellow " and to look at his results only, 
casting upon these a very critical eye. Perhaps that is 
the way we keep each other in the straight line ; but it 
does not always seem quite generously fair. 

As an instance of the way the mind of the owner 
works, an item from a poultry periodical of the spring 
of 191 1 may be illuminating: The breeders of one 
certain variety had been asked by the editor how many 
eggs per hen they considered a fair, average yield per 
year, in that variety. A baker's dozen of replies came 
to hand. One breeder gave himself leeway by making 
the output of pullets from 160 to 200; several gave 
185 as the average they considered "fair"; one did 
not choke on 200 as his estimate of this " fair" average 
for the breed; and my own average, figured from all 
but one, which I will mention later, makes the consen- 
sus of opinion 163, and pulled down to this chiefly by 
the figures of one who probably estimated the pullet 
year from a different date, as he gave 138 for pullets, 
and 160 for hens. One man alone gave facts instead 
of estimates, stating that his entire flock of many hun- 



MOLDS, SMUTS, AND BACTERIA 117 

dreds of birds actually averaged from 125 to 130 eggs 
each year. If we note also, in this connection, that 
the average as reported for the country has, in past 
censuses, lain considerably below 100, we shall get 
a still clearer view of how the owner's interests may 
influence his judgment, admitting that all have given 
their honest opinion. 

A second question, as to when the variety reaches 
laying maturity, was answered so variously as to make 
one wonder if there were any general basis of judg- 
ment. The time given varied from " four and five 
months " to " seven months " and " six to eight 
months." Is it not fair to ask whether this is actual 
variation, actual guessing, or variation in habits of 
mind in the owners ? 

Or, is it pertinent to inquire whether molds, smuts, 
bacteria, or the scores of other differences in environ- 
ment or feeding or handling, could make all these vari- 
ations in results in one single point ? 

The great point to be made in connection with dis- 
eases due to molds, several of which are grouped as 
species of aspergillosis, when mentioned scientifically, is 
that they do not tend to yield to treatment. This means 
that the one way to avoid the losses which they threaten 
is to prevent their incursions. In nature, they fasten 
themselves preferably to dead organic matter, but they 
are very adaptable, and can exist under varying con- 
ditions. The puffball is a familiar form of fungus which 
takes on a dusty condition. The fungi which cause as- 
pergillosis, though not so much in evidence as the puff- 
balls, haunt the dusty particles which rise from musty 
grains, straw, etc. 



Il8 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

In order to understand many things in reference to 
fowls, it is important to know something about their 
breathing apparatus. The more common diseases of 
fowls attack the digestive organs and the respiratory 
organs. Birds breathe faster than does man, and they 
have an addition to the bronchial passages in the form 
of air sacs. Of these there are nine, mostly in pairs, 
and named the cervical (two), the interclavicular (one, 
formed from two, originally), the anterior thoracic (two), 
the posterior thoracic (two), and the abdominal (two) 
sacs. Dr. Salmon says that these act as reservoirs of 
air and feed the lungs between breaths, thus insuring a 
plentiful supply of air all the time. 

As fowls, having no sweat glands, cannot throw off 
impurities as man does, partly by sweating, the lungs, 
aided by the air sacs, must perform more duties than those 
belonging to the lungs in man. It will be noticed that 
these sacs, located at neck, breast (front and rear), and 
abdomen, and in some birds, opening even into the 
bones of wing, thigh, and breast, communicate with 
nearly all parts of the body. 

Any infection which is in the air as dust can scarcely 
be hindered from attacking the air passages of birds. 
Dr. P. T. Woods says that such infective spores are 
found in moldy litter, in damp, swampy land, in the dust 
of grain, and in any land which has been heavily ma- 
nured and exposed to long-continued clamp or humid 
weather. Any one who knows farm life knows how 
often poorly cured straw, hay, or stalks becomes moldy 
in the mows and stacks; sometimes even before the 
shocks and cocks have left the fields where they were 
grown. This is a matter of weather and of curing; 



MOLDS, SMUTS, AND BACTERIA 119 

which curing the weather largely controls. Even a 
good farmer is subject to having spoiled hay, straw, 
grain, etc. Not so often as his more careless and inef- 
ficient neighbor, to be sure, but every agriculturist is 
much dependent on weather conditions : he never con- 
trols them, although he may learn to dodge some of 
their vagaries. And, even after grain is garnered and 
threshed, it sometimes molds and heats in the granaries. 

The poultryman is dependent on the farmer, the 
miller, the grain dealer, many times. If brought up in 
town, he may know absolutely nothing about all this 
early history of his straw and grain; nothing of the pos- 
sibilities of lurking death in the litter or the grain which 
he buys. And, because he, too, is under the dominion 
of Nature's laws, the bran or corn meal which he buys 
may heat and mold in his own bins, without his suspicion 
of anything wrong. The born farmer learns these 
tricks of circumstances as he grows from boyhood to 
manhood ; the townsman without country background 
may be an utter ignoramus, having not one idea about 
hundreds of things which are as the alphabet to one 
brought up under farm conditions. Points about milling, 
storage, handling, fanning, sifting grain and mill stuffs, 
must be learned by the poultryman who comes from city 
conditions item by item. And, in the meantime, we can 
only say to him : " You must be sure to buy only sound, 
bright grains and first-class mill products, and to avoid 
dusty litter." 

One of the poultry periodicals published, a few years 
ago, a question from one of its subscribers, which 
startled even the M. D. at the head of the Department, 
seasoned by years of answering questions pertaining to 



120 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

fowl diseases. Some sick birds were described as going 
blind ; others as unable to swallow ; others as thirsty 
and ravenous for food; some were lame, some had lost 
control of the legs, some were very nervous ; with some 
there were symptoms of internal pain ; some showed 
convulsive attacks, and some had discharges and cheesy 
swellings of eye, nostril, and mouth. Let me hasten to 
say that such aggregated evil conditions are not at all 
common; indeed, they were so uncommon as to show 
inexcusable carelessness or lamentable ignorance, and 
the first thing the M. D. advised was to kill all that were 
much sick. Then he ordered disinfection, internal, ex- 
ternal, and almost eternal, with burning of litter and 
change of feed. The owner confessed to feeding kaffir 
corn, millo maize, and broom corn seed "in all its dust 
and straw," and said that he had heard that broom corn 
dust was poisonous to human flesh when the skin was 
broken. The M. D. stated that the mold spores con- 
tained in the dust of the broom corn seed and straw were 
undoubtedly the root of the trouble, and ordered the 
whole outfit of unusual grains discontinued, at least for 
a time. 

It seems to me that a majority of people are so con- 
stituted that they cannot follow directions unless they 
know the "why." The Beginner who can follow di- 
rections, as given by those already successful and expert, 
need never fall into any such difficulty as the above. 
But I give this instance as a striking warning not to 
use dusty stuff when it seems possible that the dust may 
be due to mold. 

It is good training to visit a mill, or several dealers in 
mill products and study the appearance of the ground 



MOLDS, SMUTS, AND BACTERIA 121 

stuffs. The bright, clean appearance of first-class 
ground products soon appeals to the eye. The nose 
may also help the eye ; even the "feel" of these prod- 
ucts is something to be learned, as having a bearing 
on the question of quality and adaptability of feeds. 
When moist mash is used, it makes much difference to 
the birds whether or not it is of a certain consistency. 
Many mill products will, give only a union of grain and 
water, from which the water tends to separate continu- 
ally. Others, added, may change it into a soft, smooth, 
attractive foodstuff which the fowls welcome eagerly. 
And these things make a difference with growth and 
egg yield. 

Many of the symptoms of paralysis, nervous contor- 
tion, etc., mentioned above may go with bacterial affec- 
tions. Such trouble may come from allowing the birds to 
drink barnyard seepage ; even a drinking vessel, allowed 
to grow slimy in hot weather, may be the source of these or 
kindred troubles. Foul ground, foul houses, foul water, 
or foul feed may lead to "mysterious" disease, under 
some of the heads which we are now considering. 

In the summer time, bran, corn meal, and meat meal 
need to be closely examined. The grains may heat and 
mold ; the meat meal may be of such quality as to be 
entirely unfit for young chickens, even though the older 
birds were able to use it without becoming sick. Good 
scrap is bright in color, and it is usually thought best to 
buy that which is not too fine, lest it contain fertilizer 
refuse. 

Milk is a well-known carrier of bacteria ; milk that 
shows less than 100,000 such germs to the cubic inch 
being passed as very good by some Health Boards. 



122 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

These bacteria are vegetable growths, and they are of 
two kinds : noxious, and the reverse. At least, many 
claim that only the real disease germs are noxious, in 
milk. There is nothing better for poultry, both old and 
young, than good milk ; but where milk is given as a 
drink, in hot weather, special care is necessary. There 
is nothing else, I think, that will become filthy and evil- 
smelling as quickly as a milk fountain that is not regu- 
larly cleansed, unless it be the ground about it, where 
the birds drip the liquid. The vessels should be made 
as clean as for the table, twice a day, in hot weather. 
The ground should be spaded at once, if it becomes foul, 
and a broad fountain base to catch leakage or drip is a 
wise precautionary supply- An old pie-plate will do the 
work, if nothing else be available. 

Although it is contended that there are several forms 
of " white diarrhoea," the one discovered by Professor 
Rettger, working with the Connecticut Experiment Sta- 
tion, may possibly deserve more than usual notice by chick 
raisers, because the source is affirmed to be the mother hen. 
The Station work in 1910 — the data being published in 
April, 191 1 — covered one set of comparative experi- 
ments, in which 200 chicks, hatched together, but part 
purposely infected with white diarrhoea, were used. It 
showed both the virulence of the disease and the vigor 
of uninfected chicks. All were incubator chicks. 
Division was into three infected lots, and three check lots, 
uninfected. One lot was infected from a chick that had 
died from white diarrhoea ; one from an infected hen ; 
one from the yolk of a fresh egg. Two of these cul- 
tures had been carried over from the previous year. By 
the fifth day, 14 in one lot were already dead. At the 



MOLDS, SMUTS, AND BACTERIA 123 

end of 25 days, 71 per cent of the three infected lots were 
dead, while the survivors were stunted and anaemic. In 
the three lots of uninfected chicks having the same care, 
only four out of the hundred had died. One inference 
from the above might be that it is unwise to feed egg to 
small chicks in yards where white diarrhoea of this type 
is prevalent. 



XI 

MEDICINES, DISINFECTANTS, AND INSEC- 
TICIDES 

Household Remedies for Poultry — Packaged Supplies 
— Cleansing, While Nature Repairs — Discharges and 
Protrusions — A Spraying Paint — An Incubator Dis- 
ease — " Always at It " 

It is far better not to need a medicine chest than to 
provide the very best that could be thought out. But, 
human nature being what we know it to be, we can 
easily foresee that the average worker will not fail to 
need medicines at times, even though the times be 
infrequent. The poultry keeper who can learn to use 
his household remedies will be in a measure less depend- 
ent than one who buys medicines especially put up and 
specifically offered to poultrymen. This is partly 
because modern " specifics " are rather likely to be old 
friends under new and strange names, with 50 per cent 
to 100 per cent added to the price, — to pay, I judge, 
for the making over. This means that kerosene, or 
gasoline, made into Robinson Crusoe's Lice Paint with 
the addition of something equally cheap, then canned, 
may appear as a most valuable poultry supply at one 
dollar or one dollar and a quarter a gallon. 

Or, take our somewhat intimate friend, tobacco dust ; 
or perhaps plaster of Paris. Juggled and combined a 
little, they come out in the open and claim to be one of 
the necessities of the poultryman's existence, at 25 cents 
or 50 cents for a little box holding it may be three or four 

124 



MEDICINES, DISINFECTANTS, AND INSECTICIDES 125 

ounces. Egg Forcers, too, follow the rule: cayenne 
pepper, linseed meal, and a few other of our old friends, 
with, possibly, gunpowder and Spanish flies — who 
knows ? — masquerade as a new and wonderful Egg 
Food. 

Expenses for boxing, labeling, and advertising new 
supplies must be met, and a reasonable profit added, of 
course. This is perfectly legitimate, and there are many 
business men handling poultry for pleasure or to pro- 
vide fresh supplies for the family table, who are glad to 
pay the manufacturer for doing the detail work of mak- 
ing supplies of all kinds ready for instant use. But one 
should consider that this work must be paid for, and 
that the smaller quantities one buys, the more he pays 
in proportion. Clover which may sell for six to ten 
dollars a ton as hay, becomes "clover meal,'' or "cut 
clover" at two dollars a hundred. The disinfectant 
that started at six dollars for five gallons, becomes 
$1.50 per gallon, and 50 cents per quart. This is the com- 
mon way of trade, and is to be expected ; but it is 
wisdom on the part of those who must make money 
from their poultry, to do a bit of figuring on these 
things; because, the price of the disinfectant, above, is, 
proportionately, above 60 per cent more in the smallest 
lot named than in the largest. With few fowls, it is not 
wise to buy in the large quantities ; but there are prepa- 
rations equally good that can usually be made at home 
at very small cost, provided that one's time be not too 
valuable. 

The diseases commonest among domestic birds are 
those affecting the liver, the bowels, the head and throat, 
and the egg organs. Among these, all but those of the 



126 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

head and throat may be induced by wrong feeding ; and 
even the last may be brought on by wrong handling. 
The liver, the bowels, and the egg organs are, however, 
subject to diseases which may pass from fowl to fowl in 
the flocks. Dr. Salmon has stated his belief that even 
inflammation of the oviduct, resulting in clusters of eggs 
looking as if cooked, and ruining the bird showing the 
difficulty, is contagious, or may be so. 

This brings us to the consideration of disinfectants. 
More and more, everywhere, the medical profession is 
leaning on disinfectant treatment, — just careful cleans- 
ing, while natural forces repair the difficulty, whatever 
it may be. Most of the disinfectants in use in poultry 
yards at the present time are closely related to one an- 
other. The intestinal disinfectants recommended by 
Dr. Salmon are naphthol, benzonapthol, betol, and salicy- 
late of bismuth, the dose of each being named as one 
half to one grain for a full-grown fowl. Speaking of 
" blackhead " in turkeys, which, though beginning in 
the blind sacs and affecting the liver, may yet rank as 
an intestinal disease, he urges that all the turkeys on 
the place should be killed, disinfection in general being 
confined to the runs and ranges. But he says that if 
internal disinfection is attempted, hyposulphite of sodium 
may be usefuL in doses of two to four grains, or betol in 
one-grain doses. Or, sulphur, ten grains ; sulphate of 
iron, one grain ; sulphate of quinine, one grain. This 
last is very often a friend to the poultryman, especially 
in cases of cold and roup. 

There is a list of nearly forty species of worms infest- 
ing poultry. Dr. Salmon calls turpentine an excellent 
remedy for " all worms which inhabit the digestive canal " 



MEDICINES, DISINFECTANTS, AND INSECTICIDES 127 

of domestic fowls. It may first be tried, one half diluted 
with olive oil. If failing in its object when thus ad- 
ministered, it may be given pure. The dose of turpentine 
is from one to three teaspoonfuls. Fortunately, worms 
in fowls are not very common, although most poultry- 
men have them to contend with at some time, if they 
keep fowls through many years, and especially if many 
are brought in from outside. One who buys eggs is a 
little safer from such troubles. If worms appear, the 
safest and quickest treatment is to destroy all affected 
fowls, and to disinfect the runs thoroughly. 

It is, as a rule, useless to treat any difficulty with the 
egg organs, unless it may be those which come from 
abnormal laying, or from the attentions of the male. 
External swellings at the vent, mild discharges, and pro- 
trusions may be treated with disinfectant oils. Any of 
the tar products are good, or the petroleum residues. 
When I chance to have zenoleum on hand, I use that, 
and find it very good. Any of this class, related to car- 
bolic acid, or phenol, is likely to be good and effective, 
wherever a disinfectant is needed. Internally, or on 
raw surfaces, they must be well diluted, as noted above. 
A further word on these will come in when we consider 
insecticides. 

In treating diseases of the head and throat, the story 
of disinfectant treatment is repeated once more. The 
liquid roup cures and the washes that are used are com- 
monly muriatic tincture of iron, permanganate of potash, 
or dissolved copper sulphate or peroxide of hydrogen. 
The last two excoriate harshly, and the fowls struggle 
and suffer much. Dilute peroxide — to one half — is 
better. I have found tincture of iron most satisfactory, 



128 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

painting it on the cankers, if the disease has reached this 
stage. If not, I use one or two grains of quinine to a 
fowl, or aconite and spongia in the drinking water. A 
dozen homeopathic pellets of aconite to a quart of drink- 
ing water, given early in the attack, may ward it off very 
promptly. 

Good poultrymen everywhere rely less and less on 
medicines, but more and more on prevention and disin- 
fectants. The chief means of prevention for this last 
class of diseases has been the open-front poultry house. 
In such houses, diseases of the breathing organs are not 
common. Sunshine and fresh air, here, as everywhere, 
are Nature's best simples. 

Disinfectants to be used to ward off vermin may be 
considered a necessity to every poultryman. He who is 
most cleanly and who uses the most dry earth, kainit, 
etc., on the droppings boards, will need the least insecti- 
cides. Time, money, and work in incredible proportion 
will be saved by using these aids as preventives. It is 
rather easy, by spraying roosts once a month in hot 
weather, and once in two months, possibly, in the colder 
months, to keep the houses entirely free from the red 
mite (which is gray or brownish when not gorged with 
blood), one great foe to successful poultry raising. If 
lice paint be used for this spray, the larger lice which 
infest the fowls under the feathers will also be destroyed, 
as the fumes of these sprays are fatal to the vermin. 

A paint, or spraying material, of this sort, much used, 
is made by dissolving a pound of naphthalene flakes in 
one gallon of kerosene. After it stands a clay or so, with 
occasional shaking, it will probably be in good condition 
to use. Fowls, and even chicks, may be treated by 



MEDICINES, DISINFECTANTS, AND INSECTICIDES 129 

painting a box on the inside, and placing them in the 
box, with a burlap bag thrown over all. But close at- 
tention is necessary, to see when they have had enough. 
A prominent turkey raiser treats the mother turkeys 
after this manner when taking them from the nest, be- 
fore she allows them to be cooped with their broods. 




The Best-Medicine Chest : Nature's Own Disease Preventives and Cheap Dis- 
infectants, Sunshine, Air, Earth 

Twenty minutes of this insures that the lice on the 
mother shall not, later, pass to the younger, choicer 
hosts, the tender poults. 

A large handler of poultry supplies in this country 
puts himself on public record as believing white diarrhoea 
to be " an incubator disease." By this, he means that 
it is due almost wholly to incorrect conditions surround- 

K 



130 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

ing the eggs while under incubation. As the members of 
this firm have handled incubators and incubator chicks 
during many years, and have given their utmost study 
to the conditions belonging to artificial hatching, one 
may not carelessly deny their conclusions. These people 
say, cleverly, that a pullet represents the combination 
of a small chicken, a large quantity of feed, and a few 
other conditions. They are willing to go on record as 
saying also that bowel trouble with incubator chicks is 
unknown " unless heat goes wrong in brooders !" Lin- 
ing this up with the statement about an incubator disease, 
we begin to feel that both incubators and brooders will 
" bear watching," even after we have used our best judg- 
ment in selecting the right make of machines. 

Some one says that the poultryman who would fight 
vermin successfully must be like the lice themselves, 
"always at it"; which is by no means a bad way to 
bring to our minds the fact that this is a war in which 
there is "no discharge." However, with systematic use 
of the disinfectant "paints" and careful whitewashing 
of inner walls, one may come out victor, and not work 
half so hard as he must needs if he neglect things till 
the legion foe get the start of him. 



XII 

METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 

Protecting One's Enthusiasms — A Poultryman's "In- 
spiration " — Roving Vermin — Rats — Items to be 
Noted — Before — Or After ? — Man's Age-old En- 
emy — Rat Harbors Mean War on the Chicken Yard — 
Government Bulletin on Rats — A Plague of Mice — 
Mice and the Poultry Keeper 

In the winter of 1910-1911 I wrote to an egg customer 
of the previous season, who had bought 24 eggs for hatch- 
ing, to see if I could buy any of his ducks from these 
eggs. His reply was, "None to spare; owls, rats, 
polecats, and minks left me but three." I knew, too, 
one family of Beginners in poultry raising who spent 
nearly two years in repeated efforts to make the poultry 
houses on their newly bought place rat-proof. A woman 
poultry raiser wrote me the details of a fierce fight 
against mites " in piles," which had gained a hold before 
being discovered. She reported a victory in sight at 
last, but added, " I shall never again have the same 
enthusiasm for poultry raising." 

Enthusiasm is a compelling factor in any business 
that is to be successful. Therefore, it is the part of 
wisdom to protect one's enthusiasms from needless 
chilling. The most abject failures follow the loss of 
that kindling enthusiasm which leads to good work. 
Thus, it is only good sense to guard against anything 
that may lessen enthusiasm, even though your practical 
man will sneer at enthusiasms as illusory. 



132 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 




Apple Tree. Bark Showing Much Injury from Meadow Mice 



METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 



1 33> 



In order to be an enthusiastic poultry raiser beyond 
the beginning, then, it will be necessary for you to keep 
your poultry houses and coops clean, lest you entail 
disease ; sprayed against the small vermin such as lice 
and mites; close-netted against roaming vermin — 
weasels, minks, cats, and even the neighbor's pet dog. 

If you station the coops near a hummocky swale, 
there is danger of minks, etc. ; if too near a forest, owls 
and hawks and crows will demand, and will take, a toll; 
if near a highway, vehicles and dogs must have their 
chance at your pets and your profits ; if too near infested 
barns or rubbish-heaps, rats will eat and foul and waste 
the feed if it be openly free and plentiful, or devour your 
eggs and chicks if the grains are safe in tin-lined bins. 
'Possums will have a try at your dainties in the way of 
eggs, etc., even if they have to enter the houses to get 
them. Polecats know the juiciness of young chicken 
meat, and the fox and "the little rid hin " have always 
been at polite loggerheads. 

Fortunately, few are likely to have to contend with 
all these trials ; still more fortunately, none need be 
subject to their depredation, if he work his wits hard 
enough in advance. I don't know who it was that said, 
" Inspiration is perspiration," but inspiration and most 
other things are perspiration to the commercial poultry 
raiser! Even fretting will induce perspiration, at times. 

Early in the year 19 10, a city woman established 
herself in the country, just between the places of two 
old hands at poultry raising, as it chanced. She was 
full of original ideas. She lectured by the hour on the 
trite methods of making money with poultry (original 
ways, of course) and generously instructed the two hard- 



METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 135 

headed ones on either side. She told how to handle 
incubators, brooders, laying hens ; discoursed on the 
painful sickness of the sitting hen, — wrapped in such a 
high fever, — and radiated wisdom in general. Fate 
was most unkind to her, after all this generosity, and, 
during this particular season, all her enterprises were 
hounded by " ill luck." Just as the early chicks were 
getting a fine start, a trio of neighborly cats, jealous, 
possibly, for the laurels of the neighborhood, attacked a 
brooder run in the daytime and took, at one clip, fifty 
of Miladi's up-to-date youngsters ! After the Arabian 
was purloined, they locked the door to his apartments ; 
this tells the whole story of loss by vermin. Which 
is better, poultry keepers all, to pay out good, hard 
moneys for concrete and lumber and wire netting to 
make things shipshape and safe ; or to pay out 25, 50, 
or 100 chicks "on account" (of experience) and then go 
and buy the lumber, etc. ? 

Table of Items from Experience 

Item I. Look out for the Family Cat ! 

Item II, Look out for Rats and Rubbish Piles ! 

Item III. Look out for Fox Terriers, which are "Fly 
By-Nights ! " 

Item IV. Look out for Crows, Hawks, and all the 
Woods Haunters ! 

Item V. Look out for Minks, Weasels, Water Rats, 
and all the Water Vermin. 

Item VI. Look out for Mites and Bedbugs and all 
House and Roost and Nest Vermin ! 

Item VII. Look out for Head Lice and Vent Lice 
and Wing Lice and Thigh Lice and Feather-eating 



136 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Lice and all the Body Vermin, including Fleas, Chigoes 
("jiggers "), and What Not, especially the "What Not," 
because that includes all that we are not usually look- 
ing out for ! 

"Before"? or "After"? Friend, which is it to be? 
"Before" means coops full of thrifty chicks, "luck" 
galore, and enthusiasm unbounded as to the future of 
poultry. 

"After" means small bunches of ailing chicks, dis- 
couragement, losses inexplicable of chicks and fowls, 
losses of enthusiasm and a pessimistic outlook on the 
future of poultry (with a very small/). 

You who read — do you think you are clever ? Do 
you believe in yourself as a good business man — or 
woman ? Do you think it reasonable to believe that 
the " billion-dollar " poultry industry of this country is 
carried on at a loss ? Is it safe to wager that you can 
come out even with the average of your more than five 
million competitors, in a fair field and with no favor ? 
So? 

Well, then, what about the rat ? An article in one 
of the great magazines during 1910, entitled " Our Duel 
with the Rat," made the statement that the rat was the 
only living thing against which men had made no per- 
ceptible headway, and more than hinted that it is to be 
a duel between man and the rat for the possession of 
the world. 

I have seen a more recent statement that the family 
cat destroys more chickens than all other enemies taken 
together ! Many of us may doubt this. But, as to the 
rat ? Which is the worse, both being so guiltily guilty ? 

An exultant letter received from a farm on the day 



METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 137 








Great Hosneo Owt. 



This Species Is Infrequent and Does Little Damage. As Shown Is about One 
Eighth Natural Size 



138 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

of this writing, says : " One of our cats is the greatest 
ratter we ever saw." Were she yours, would you keep 
her, as being the lesser of two evils? I have known one 
cat, with five kits to feed, to kill $75 worth of fine poul- 
try in a single season. 

This, as other questions, narrows finally to man's un- 
derstanding of the animals under his care. For, if he 
understands their nature and habits of " mind," he can 
usually bend them to his will. A good mouser and rat- 
ter is not so likely to need to catch birds, but it may be 
that the hunting instinct is strong. Nevertheless, a 
hunting kitten can be taught that the chickens are wider 
the protection of her master, just as she, herself, is. A 
few sharp scoldings, or a drubbing, if need be, will grave 
this lesson on her consciousness. Then, with proper 
care, she will be all right. But if you feed her chicken 
heads and waste, how can you wonder, and why should 
you — how dare you — complain if she goes farther and 
takes the bodies also ? If you allow your hens to lay 
soft-shelled eggs which break easily, how dare you blame 
them for becoming egg eaters ? Look to yourself, dear 
Sir — or Madam. Is not your judgment given you for 
the very purpose of helping you to avoid such obvious 
errors, and to fix your dominion over the lower animals ? 

The rat, however, is in a class by himself. He is an 
enemy to man from the ages. And, now that we know 
that he carries and distributes the dreaded bubonic plague 
throughout the world (even crossing the ocean with it, 
as a stowaway), and has passed it on to the squirrels in 
some places, we need to impress it fully on our minds 
that he is an enemy to be feared and fought to the finish. 
The extreme suspicion and the intelligence of the rat 



METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 139 

make him difficult to deal with, but he has a weakness : 
more than aught else he seems to fear the place where 
rats die, or disappear, or where things are torn up and 
topsy-turveyed. He can be fought on this basis. 

He can be fought on the basis of prevention, and the 
cities are being called upon to unite in such warfare. 
We need to deal with him always on suspicion, even as 
he deals with us. We need to clear up every harbor of 
boards or rubbish heaps or tumble-down buildings. The 
rat must hide ; this is our cue. We need concrete floors 
and foundations which he cannot penetrate. We need 
to fight him in advance, everywhere and always. 

The necessity for extermination of the rat has recently 
become so grave that the United States government has 
placed its immense prestige behind the movement. Sev- 
eral countries have made efforts along this line, but 
without wholly satisfactory results. It is evident that 
international cooperation will be necessary to handle 
this small but shrewd and vicious enemy to mankind. 
One of the first undertakings urged is the "rat-proof- 
ing " of all buildings within city limits. It is to the sea- 
ports and cities, largely, that the outlying towns and the 
country places owe the plague of rats. Yet the cities 
alone cannot now deal thoroughly with it. If the cities 
kill, as San Francisco, in her extremity, did, the country 
is saved. But if the cities drive out, without killing, 
the country places must suffer from this action. It is 
evident that every individual must add his effort at ex- 
termination. The rat-proofing of granaries has long 
been a necessity for the farm ; not so, apparently, the 
rat proofing of grain barrels and bins. These should 
not be neglected. The hopper feeding of poultry, so 



140 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

popular of late, works in the direction of helping the 
rat, unless the rat-proof hoppers are provided. Sheet 
metals, or papers made poisonous or repellent may be 
used. In feed alone, the rat causes world losses of mil- 
lions of dollars in value. In old-world cities it has 
caused the loss of many thousands of lives. And in 
our own western borders, many thousands of dollars 
were spent to free us from the plague which had found 
an entrance, and was being distributed by these vermin 
throughout all the burrows and cellars and refuse piles 
in the great coast city. When it had come to a choice 
between the wholesale destruction of either the people 
or the rats, the most expert plague authorities in the 
country took the matter in hand. 

Perhaps the keenest interest, just now, lies in the 
bacterial preparations being widely advertised. In 
1909 the government put itself on record as having 
found these not sufficiently effective. That is, "when 
fresh and virulent," they will kill most of the rats which 
really eat the baits ; but the infection passed on to 
others is on too small a scale to be considered a reliable 
means of rat extinction. 

The two chief points made by the government 
authorities, with reference to keeping down the plague 
of rats, are the necessity of denying them harborage 
and the equal necessity of destroying their food. In 
the cities, garbage, and especially kitchen refuse, is 
said to be the chief source of food supply. In the 
country, particularly on poultry farms, it is the feed 
bags and barrels and hoppers left ready to their taking 
of the contents. Even without these, there would 
remain the unhoused grain and the insecure chickens. 



METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 141 




Sharp-shinned Hawk-The E 

[Upper figure, immature female ; low 



biRDS Vjd Chickens 



Our Biological Survey Believes in the Economic Value of most Predaceous 
Birds, But This One Needs to Be Kept in Check. Birds form its Chief Food. 
One Fourth Natural Size 



142 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

And, if the ground squirrels take (as affirmed) a 
$10,000,000 annual toll from the farmers, who can 
estimate farm losses from the ever-present rats ? 

As respects the poultry keeper, it is not going beyond 
the limit to say that the presence or the absence of rats 
may alone decide whether he make a profit, or suffer a 
loss through his venture. Margins everywhere are 
small, and losses from depredations of various sorts, 
infinite in number, though each one may be a bagatelle. 
I cannot be too insistent that the Beginner train him- 
self, from the earliest minute, not to permit rat harbors, 
and not to leave the feed so that these vermin can main- 
tain themselves at his expense, later to steal and kill — 
perhaps worse — also at his expense. Cornell Station 
has a pattern of a rat-proof hopper for feeding small 
grains or dry mash, and I think supply houses carry a 
somewhat similar one for sale. 

A United States Bulletin can be had, covering all the 
points on which information is usually desired. In locali- 
ties where rats or squirrels have become a scourge, the 
Biological Survey will, whenever possible, send a skilled 
assistant to demonstrate the most reliable ways of rid- 
ding the land of these pests. Poisoning with barley 
and strychnine is one of the modern, most approved, 
methods of destroying rodents. 

There are two points in connection with field mice 
that may make it imperative for growers of birds to 
study and to fight these also, insignificant although 
most people may regard them as being. Plagues of 
lice, grasshoppers, ants, and mice have abundantly es- 
tablished the fact that nothing is too small to become a 
menace to man, if its aggregate numbers increase suffi- 



METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 



J 43 



ciently at any one point. And plagues of mice have long 
been known in the older countries. 

The two points to which I wish to call attention are 
the fouling of grain feeds for pigeons, by the excreta of 
mice, making the food actually poisonous, and the fact 










Alfalfa Field Ruined by Field Mice (Department of Agriculture Year Book) 

that scourges of field mice, counted " among the oldest 
and most disastrous known in history," destroy vegeta- 
tion almost completely. " Pasturage, hay, alfalfa, clover, 
grain, — whether growing or stacked, — vineyards, shrub- 
bery, and even forest trees have been destroyed." 
This hits the poultryman at a vital point, especially 
in the alfalfa country. During 1908, according to the 
United States government Report, a species of mice 



144 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



infested the alfalfa fields to such an extent, in a portion 
of the state of Nevada, that 15,000 acres out of 20,000 
were a total loss. The government was obliged to take 




The Destructive " Carson Meadow Mouse," a Plague of which in 1907-8 Ruined 
Alfalfa and Potatoes, severely Injured Beets, Carrots, and Fruit Trees. 
Poultry Depends on all of These 

a hand in the destruction of the field mice, reported as 
reaching "the astonishing total of 12,000 to the acre." 
The farmers found out their debt to some other 
friends at this time : hawks and owls, gulls, herons, 
ravens, skunks, badgers, weasels, foxes, and coyotes 



METHODS OF CIRCUMVENTING VERMIN 145 

assembling in the valley and killing "at least 45,000 
mice a day." The Survey came to the rescue in this 
plague experience. The Department Report for 1908, 
which tells the story, declares : " Poisoning is the most 
generally applicable, cheapest, and most certain means 
for controlling mouse plagues at present known." It 
also recites the various methods of combating the 
plague, poisoned green alfalfa placed in the runs and 
burrows being " fatal to practically all the mice, in the 
areas treated." As field mice produce, annually, from 
two to six litters, which may average six, running oc- 
casionally to a dozen or more, the early young breeding, 
probably, the same year, the danger of overmultiplica- 
tion is always near. The United States government 
has consistently favored holding Nature's balances, as 
far as may be, arguing that the few chickens which 
roving vermin may kill are nothing as against the losses 
that may follow the persistent destruction of the pre- 
daceous birds and mammals, whose chief food is worse 
enemies of man. Concerning large enemies of mice in 
the incident reported, the report says that probably 3000 
of these appeared in the valley during the mice plague, 
and adds : " It may be assumed that these 3000 natural 
enemies would each destroy an average of 15 mice a 
day, or 450 a month, or collectively would kill 45,000 
mice a day, or 1,350,000 per month. This number, vast 
as it is, is far too small to put an end to a well-establisJied 
plague, although more than ample to check a plague 
during its early stages, or to completely wipe it out 
after the numbers have been materially reduced by 
poisons or other agencies." 

What is known as "the plague mouse " almost always 

L, 



146 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

belongs to a genus known as Microtias, of which fifty 
species inhabit the United States, and some one of these 
may be found in practically every part of our land. 
Their estimated annual damage is $3,000,000. But the 
indirect damage of mice plagues, as affecting poultry 
raising, etc., through the feed might be impossible of 
computation. Most of these mice are short and chunky, 
with short, round tails, short ears, rather small eyes, and 
short legs. The cut of the Carson meadow mouse (the 
one fought in Nevada) well shows their characteristics. 



XIII 

TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 

A Common Type — The Preferred Lumber — Lengthening 
the Life of Materials — A West Virginia Experiment 
Station House — A Deep, Shed House, Colony Type — A 
Broad Construction Principle — Shelters for Hot and 
Cold Climates — Layers in Weaning Coops 

It is deemed far from desirable to give a long disser- 
tation on building and many plans, when there are several 
hand books at twenty-five and fifty cents each, and bulletins 
from the states interested in poultry, treating this subject 
at more or less length, and in full detail. Two or three 
plans which have been used, and which show modern 
tendencies in poultry housing, will be all that any poul- 
tryman will need. 

A very common and satisfactory type of house, espe- 
cially in New England, is nothing more than a double, 
equal pitch shell, ended toward the south, and having 
this south end open, or screened with wire or net, inside 
of which is a curtain. This is dropped only when the 
owner thinks it necessary ; the less the better, as a 
rule. This curtain may be on nice, shipshape frames, 
hinged, and opening inward and upward, or may slide to 
the right or left on rings and wire, or it may roll up on 
a light pole run into a wide hem at the bottom, as the 
poultryman pleases. 

The dimensions, 10 feet x 16 feet, use lumber to 
good advantage, and a house of this size costs less in 
proportion than a smaller one. If built permanently, 
this is a good size. If you like to have a movable house, 

H7 



148 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

built on skids, to be used as a colony bouse in summer, 
the units drawn together in groups for easy care in win- 
ter, 8 feet X 10 feet is more desirable to handle, as it will 
not rack so much with moving, and is not so heavy. 
This size, too, cuts well without waste. 

Portable House in Use at Wisconsin Station (See Bulletin No. 215) 

This portable chicken house is designed for small flocks and will accom- 
modate ten to a dozen chickens. This is 6 X 8 feet, boarded horizontally. 
The portable house is covered on the exterior with tar paper, which is put on 
up and down, all joints being cemented. Over each joint and also between, 
nail a 2X3 inch strip to prevent the paper from working in the wind. The 
door has a screen wire covering for daytime and a hinged cloth screen 
to cover the wire screen at night. The roost is movable and is placed 14 
inches from the ceiling. Four skids of 4x6 inch material running lengthwise 
of the building on which the floor rests, make a ready means to move the 
house from one place to another. 

Bill of Material for the Portable House 

Hemlock may be used instead of pine, if kept well painted. 
Roof, Sides, and Dropping Board — 

250 board feet of 8-inch shiplap, No. 2 pine. 

Floor — 

54 board feet of 6 inch matched fencing, No. 2 pine. 
Cornice Fascia, Dropping Board Frame, and Window Casings — 
4 pieces 1 x 3 inch, 16 feet long, No. 2 pine. 

Rafters, Studding, Skids, and Girts — 

7 pieces 2x4 inch, 12 feet long, No. 2 pine. 
4 pieces 2x4 inch, 10 feet long, No. 2 pine. 
2 pieces 2x4 inch, 16 feet long, No. 2 pine. 
1 1 pieces 2X3 inch, 12 feet long, No. 2 pine. 

Miscellaneous — 

One 6-light sash, glass 8x 10 inches. 

One double roll 2 ply tar paper, 216 square feet. 

Eight square feet poultry netting, i-inch mesh. 

Three strap hinges 4 inches long. 

One hasp and staples. 



TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 149 

The kind of lumber used must depend on circum- 
stances. Hemlock is often the most available and the 
cheapest. If dressed on one side, the smooth side 
should be laid to the inside of the house, when covering 
with patent roofing outside. Pine, cypress, locust, pop- 
lar, all come into play in different parts of the country, 
cheapness and lasting quality being desired. All ex- 
posed shingles or underground pieces may be saturated 
with one of the coal oil products before using, to lengthen 
their normal life. As years pass, one half the expense and 
loss may be saved thus. In our locality, no one puts any- 
thing but chestnut into the ground. The chestnut blight 
will doubtless settle that. But, in my opinion, a cheap 
post, dipped, is equal to a high-priced one, undipped. 

Because a very large proportion of the poultry work 
of this country is carried on upon soil which is distinctly 
unfavorable, I think it wise to speak strongly here. 
Dampness is a fatal fault in a poultry house. But when 
conditions are difficult to change, men put up houses 
on damp ground, without board floors, and thus base 
their work on a crucial blunder. Because Professor 
Halpin has put this point well and with reasons, the 
following quotation from Bulletin 215, Wisconsin Sta- 
tion, is given here : " A damp location means a damp 
poultry house all the way through, and the result is that 
the fowls are affected with many troublesome diseases. 
Damp ground that is likely to remain muddy around 
the house is not satisfactory, because the hens' feet be- 
come soiled and, as a consequence, the eggs and nests 
become dirty, and dirty eggs are unattractive on the 
market. If cleaned, a large amount of labor is neces- 
sary, and with the best of care, cleaned eggs never look 



150 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

so well as eggs that have never been soiled. When 
hens run at large on wet ground, the litter on the floor 
of the house soon becomes dirty and wet, thus making 
a very unsatisfactory place for feeding. The ground out 
of doors is also unsatisfactory for feeding, as wet ground 
soon becomes filthy and the filth sticks to the feed, 
making it impossible for the hens to pick it up without 
consuming more or less filth. Ground which is natu- 
rally wet is cold in the spring. It is also slower to be- 
come aerated, and holds filth on the surface much longer 
than dry ground." 

Many of the Experiment Stations favor the portable 
house, especially for growing stock. Virtually, the 
portable colony house is the same as if one built a 
poultry house on the old type of long farm sled as a 
foundation and floor. Sometimes the " runners " are 
made of two pieces each. A "three-by-four" might 
have spiked to it on the under side, a three-by-three, 
or a three-by-two-inch piece, the latter to be replaced 
whenever it rots or grows too punky. This method 
adds much length of life to the house. Such a house 
needs to be well braced, and not too large, as the large 
houses would be racked too much in moving. For the 
farm, it appears to me that this house is to be preferred 
to all others, for small flocks. It need not even be 
floored, where the soil is dry and sandy, or where it is 
in use only in the dry summer seasons, for growing 
stock. If for use in windy situations, or in winter, it 
needs some method of closing the space between the 
runners, at the rear. I think a drop board tightly fitted, 
and furnished with hooks to fasten shut, or open, as de- 
sired, might meet this need. 



152 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

The West Virginia Experiment Station was one of 
the earliest to show especial interest in poultry. For 
many years, Professor Atwood has been working stead- 
ily at poultry puzzles. I think he was the first to insist 
that eggs should be weighed at intervals during incuba- 
tion, in order to determine whether or not the air mois- 
ture were sufficient. Although not much attention was 
given his views at first, the general trend on the mois- 
ture question is bringing the people who study these 
questions in the direction of his thought, and they are 
discussing it with more appreciation now than at any 
previous time. The West Virginia Station has put out 
a Bulletin of Poultry Housing, by Professor Atwood, 
which consists largely of the description of an open- 
front laying house, which, he says, is well adapted to 
West Virginia conditions. It is really a multiplication 
of the Tolman unit ; that is, several Tolman houses 
under one roof, this being a long house, while the origi- 
nal Tolman house is a colony, — or detached house. 
The vital characteristic of this type of house is that, 
having an open front, and discrediting the use of cur- 
tains, it theoretically banks or traps the heat under the 
ridge, and places the roosts so that the hens get the 
benefit of this at night. This is attained by making 
the roof of unequal double pitch, the front portion being 
much the longer, and thus sloping to an unusually low 
front plate. To offset the sunshine lost in this way, 
windows are commonly placed in the east and west 
walls. 

The photographs give a good idea of this " Tolman 
Long House " if we may so call it ; this adapted Tolman 
House. The front is of wire netting only. The house 



TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 



153 



is unusually deep (24 feet), and its 64 feet of length is 
divided by solid partitions into four sections, 16 feet 
each. It is 5 feet in height at the front, and one foot 
higher at the rear, the peak of the roof being one third 
the distance from the back, and 10^ feet above the 
floor. The ground, in' this case, sloping toward the 
north, a scratching room is provided below the main 




Roost Platform and Nests, West Virginia Station. 
Two Platforms 



Between the Nests are 



room, reached by a trap. This has a dirt floor. 
The nest boxes, as will be seen from the cut, are 
placed between two board platforms, with a hinge door 
in front for easy access, and a ladder for the hens to 
reach the nest platform. A house like this necessitates 
strict watch for mites, which choose the neighborhood 
of the roosts as their chief haunt. 

For ventilation during the summer heat, two doors 



TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 155 

are placed in the rear wall of each room, under the 
nesting platform. This gives free sweep for air across 
the pen below the hens, at night. At zero temperatures, 
even White Leghorn combs do not freeze in this house, 
the front being constantly open. A year's use has 
proved the house satisfactory. Being built by contract, 
of locust, poplar, and hemlock, with yellow pine for 
roof sheathing and flooring, it cost $450, and gives com- 
fortable quarters to 400 Leghorns. This is about $1.12 
per hen. The main floor gives nearly four square feet 
per hen, and the birds have, in addition, the equal floor 
space below. Poultrymen, as a rule, abominate an ar- 
rangement like this, which has not head room for an 
attendant, but it gives extra space without much extra 
cost. 

A duplicate of the Bill of Materials is given below ; 
for one section only : — 

Bill of Materials for Model Poultry House. One 
Section Only, 24' x 16' 

6 pes. posts, 6" x 2' 6" locust. 

3 pes. posts, 6" x 3' 6" locust. 

3 pes. posts, 6" x 4' 6" locust. 

11 pes. joist, 2" x 8" — 16' o" long, hemlock. 

11 pes. joist, 2" x 8" — 8' o" long, hemlock. 

9 pes. sills, girders, etc., 2" x 8" — 16' o" long, hemlock. 

14 pes. plates and joist bearers, 2" x 4" — 16' o" long, hemlock. 

40 pes. studding, etc., 2" x 4" — 12' o" long, hemlock. 

9 pes. rafters, 2" x 6" — 18' o" long, hemlock. 

9 pes. rafters, 2" x 4" — 10' o" long hemlock. 

50 ft. b. m. patent siding, 5" face, poplar. 

700 ft. b. m. shiplap, 5" face, poplar. 

600 ft. b. m. roof sheathing, 4" common No. 2 y. p. flooring. 

350 ft. b. m. double surfaced y. p. ceiling, |" x 4" No. 2 com. 

600 ft. b. m. flooring, matched y. p. 3$'' face, No. 2. 



156 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

75 ft. b. m. ceiling, |" x 3" matched and beaded, y. p. No. 2. 
2 pes. I 1 ' x 10" — 16' o" long, S-4-S, poplar, feed trough. 
1 pc. I ' x 4" — 16' o" long, S-4-S, poplar, feed trough. 
1 pc. |" x 7" — 16' o" long, S-4-S, poplar, nests. 

4 pes. f" x 5" — 10' o" long, S-4-S, poplar, nests. 

1 pc. y x 8" — 12' o" long, S-4-S, poplar, gangs. 

2 pes. I" x 5" — 12' o" long, S-4-S, poplar, gangs. 

1 door frame, 2' 10" x 6' o" — l" x if" rebate strip, poplar. 
1 door frame, 2' 8" X 4' o" — |" x if" rebate strip, poplar. 

1 door frame, 2' 1 1 '," x 6' 5" — fitted with 1 \" x \\" hinge strip for 

double acting door, poplar. 

2 doors, 2' 10" x 6' o" — \ double surfaced, matched and beaded 

batten doors with $" x 4" battens, poplar. 
1 door, 2' 8" x 4' o" — |" double surfaced, matched and beaded 
batten door with |" x 4" battens, poplar. 

1 mullion window frame, 2 single sash, 6 It. 10" x 12", poplar. 

2 sash, if" — 6 It. 10" x 12", glazed S. S. A. glass. 

5 squares composition tarred felt roofing, 2 ply, first quality. 
2 squares tarred building felt, 2 ply. 

14 lin, ft. mesh wire, 3" sq. mesh. 50" wide, No 20. wire. 
14 lin, ft. mesh wire, 3" sq. mesh. 32" wide, No. 20. wire. 

One may build a simple, shed house, deep in propor- 
tion to width. Such a house, or its modifications mounted 
on skids, will fill every need of the small poultryman. 
If the roof were bent down in front, making it of double 
pitch with lower front, much cold air could thus be 
shut out, with no added expense for materials, and only 
a little more trouble in building. If bent at a point far 
enough back, one would get the Tolman house outline. 
Professor Atwood says : " In poultry houses having a 
shed roof, the warm air constantly flows away from the 
fowls when they are on the perches, thus making the 
shed roof type of house colder for the fowls at night." 
I think this is a point which poultrymen have very 
generally overlooked, in their zeal to get every ray of 



TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 



157 



sunlight during the day. I believe it to be one of the 
key points in getting winter eggs. If, however, one 
have a shed house, snug night quarters may be easily 
provided, at a little additional cost, by laying a light 
platform on two strong horses, and setting thereon one 
of the three-by-six feet floored weaning coops which 
can be had of any supply house, or which can be made 
at home, if desired. These form ideal sleeping rooms 
for small pens of fowls, and, with such night quarters, 
Leghorns will lay well even if running in a cold shed 
during the day. This I know from experience. In fact, 
no breed that I have tested in this way has failed to give 
good winter returns, even in January. 

The combination principle that must govern all con- 
struction for poultry shelter is : comfort, with the great- 
est amount of fresh air possible. Although there is not 
a particle of doubt that some could make more money 
growing pullets to sell than they could from trying to 
produce winter eggs, the fact remains that the larger 
possibilities in winter eggs dispose most people to try 
the gamble for them. This is what it really is for many, 
during December, January, and February. Given good 
feed in sufficient surplus above a maintenance ration to 
produce eggs, the rest depends on the comfort of the 
birds. This is best and most safely attained in localities 
where sharp winds may be expected, by making all walls 
but the front absolutely wind-proof, and leaving the front 
more or less open. Professor Atwood says that double- 
walling at the back furnishes much-appreciated harbors 
for rats. I do not hesitate to say that more difference 
can be attained by locating the house in a sheltered spot 
than from giving it a second wall when lacking the 



158 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

shelter. Professor Atwood is the first whom I have 
known to recommend a shelter or windbreak at a little 
distance in front of the house. It would certainly have 
value, and I think a board shelter of this sort might pay 
if made in strong, well-braced panels, to be set up for 
the winter season only. Cedars make a windbreak that 
hens enjoy to the full. 

Poultrymen in Minnesota and in Maine testify that 
the open-front house works well there if muslin-covered ; 
by some, a modified open front is preferred. This is 
chiefly boarded, but with openings covered by muslin. 

In localities where summer heat is greatest, I would 
try shelters made of wire on a frame of light studding, 
boarded only on one side — that of the worst winds - 
and having a roof projecting six inches or more on the 
sides and front. 

In some years, I have taken my birds from the long 
houses and placed them in weaning coops, under light 
shade when possible. The fowls so moved. never failed 
to give better results in eggs than those remaining in 
the long, too-warm house. They not only laid more 
eggs all summer, but they gave more in autumn. 

A point very likely to be slighted by the Beginner 
who is constructing permanently, is that of raising the 
floors and making sure that water shall drain away from 
the building, no matter what the location. The general 
rule is to fill in with dry earth to the top of the sills. 
Even this will not prevent seepage in an earth floor, if 
water comes down to the house from above. There 
must then be an outside drain, or good banking. This 
one point often makes the difference between a satisfac- 
tory, and a wholly unsatisfactory, house, and in general 



TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 1 59 

experience, health, and egg yield. The concrete founda- 
tion disposes of this difficulty effectually. 

Edgar Warren, a New Hampshire poultry raiser of 
some reputation, describes one of his houses, newly built, 
which he regards as " a model." It is twelve by twenty- 
four feet on the floor, seven feet high at the front, four 
and one half feet high at the rear. It faces south, 
having three glass and two curtained windows. The 
glass is at the south and east. The curtained windows 
are three by four feet in size, fitted with frames hinged 
at top and covered with heavy duck. The roof is double- 
pitch, the short rafters being three feet, the long ones 
ten feet, in length. The floor is of boards, and the house 
is covered with patent roofing of red rope on sides and 
ends, the roof being shingled. The material cost $50, 
and it was intended to house fifty hens. Mr. Hunter, 
a poultryman and editor for almost a lifetime, criticises 
adversely the short front pitch, the low back, and the 
shingle roof; also the east-end window. Many poultry- 
men like the quickly laid cheap patent roofings for roof 
as well as sides. They keep drafts out more surely. 
But the Beginner can see, by this difference of opinion 
between experts, that there is room for the exercise of 
his own judgment, and for adaptation to circumstances. 

Five square feet of floor space is counted a fair 
amount of room for each hen, when the flock is con- 
fined. Professor Halpin calls attention to the fact that 
while each hen might be satisfied with five square feet, 
or less, if she could also use the space belonging to other 
hens, by moving about a large house, if confined alone in 
a space of five feet or less, she would not thrive ; that is, 
the larger the house, the more safely can the space per 



TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 161 

hen be cut down. He thinks farm hens often have not 
more than one square foot of space per hen. If the 
house is to be only a roosting place, this may be all 
right ; but it certainly is all wrong if the hens must stay 
much in the house. 

The "A" house is cheapest of all, and may, if de- 
sired, be used on a sled foundation, the usual square base 
being one board high. Such a shelter is not adapted to 
laying houses, which an attendant must enter and move 
about in. It is often used for sheltering outdoor brooders 
and weaning the chicks after the brooder is removed. 
Professor Halpin favors a roof, called " the two-thirds 
span," with the gable one third the way back from the 
front, especially for deep houses. He says : " Built with 
the same pitch of roof and the same elevation at the rear, 
this house contains less air space and is, therefore, 
warmer than the shed roof type. It requires twice as 
much cutting of rafters." (See New Jersey Roof Chart.) 

I am especially glad to call attention to the style of 
the " Clark House." This is usually called the " semi- 
monitor " type. Deeper houses are becoming more 
and more favored. Any old, shallow shed type of 
house can be made into a deep semi-monitor house. 
Sometimes a low front portion is added, merely for a 
scratching place for laying hens. The height of the 
old portion would limit the height of the new. Professor 
Halpin says : " It is possible, in this type of roof, to re- 
duce the air space and secure sunshine in the very back 
of the pen, and it makes a very practical small poultry 
house. Many times, the south side needs only to be 
covered with wire, and in mild localities it is to be recom- 
mended for the open-front type." 













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TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 163 

The clever reader will note that this house seems 
much like the Tolman house, but that it overcomes the 
lack of sunshine due to the Tolman low front. The 
semi-monitor throws sunlight to the very back corners, 
and thus satisfies the modern demand for the disinfective 
power of sunshine throughout the house. But, in doing 
this, the glass which occupies largely the narrow upright 
space where the roof breaks and lowers, becomes a radi- 
ator of heat, thus cooling the house quickly. This is 
overcome by curtaining these upper windows, or shutter- 
ing them. 

At the New Jersey Station new houses of various 
types, and using different kinds of roofings, were 
erected in 1910. Professor Lewis recommends only 
one type of building for a permanent house that is to 
be set directly on the ground. This has a solid wall 
of brick, stone, or concrete, the last being the most 
economical. For the wall, a trench is first dug, and 
bedded several inches deep with cinders. On this is 
set a form for the concrete, narrower than the trench. 
The concrete itself may be made as an agglomerate 
of stone, etc. On both sides the concrete, cinders 
are filled in for drainage. The wall rises above the 
surface. A layer of good cinders is at the bottom of 
the concrete floor. A two-inch coating of concrete, 
consisting of six parts sand and gravel to one part 
cement, is aid upon the cinders. When this is dry, 
a finishing coat made with three parts sand to one 
of cement is laid very smoothly. If the house is deep 
and long, a pier is set at the center, at intervals, built 
after the same manner as the side walls. On this stable 
foundation, the preferred house is erected. 



164 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Concerning the permanent house and the best type 
of foundation, Professor Halpin says : " Where rats 
are at all troublesome, a substantial cement foundation 
is a good investment. This should always be brought 
from six inches to a foot above the surface and then 




At Work on Solid Concrete Foundation, New Jersey Experiment Station. 
Note Removable Forms and Binding Braces 

filled in with coarse material such as gravel, etc. In 
extremely wet locations, especially in clay soil, it often 
pays to excavate under the entire house and replace 
with stones or other coarse material, and then connect 
with tile drains to remove all the water from under 
the house. In many localities where stones are abun- 
dant, poultry houses are placed on stone walls, but 
unless cement is used to fasten the stones together 
securely, rats will often work under the house and 



TYPES OF MODERN HOUSING 165 

do a great deal of damage. A loose stone wall soon 
becomes an ideal dwelling place for rats, and should, 
on that account, never be placed under poultry houses. 

" A dirt floor must always be well above the outside 
surface, so that the water drains away leaving the floor 
dry and comfortable for the fowls. Where a cement 
foundation is used for the house, one can frequently 
tamp the surface hard and then fill in to the top of 
the foundation with sand. This sand should be re- 
placed each year before cold weather. 

" A cement floor is much easier to keep clean and 
is durable and rat-proof. A cement floor should never 
be left bare, but should be kept constantly covered 
with at least three inches of sand and with from six 
to ten inches of straw in winter. When sand cannot 
be had, extra care should be taken to keep the floor 
heavily littered so that none of it becomes bare. 

" In case a cement floor is used, it should always 
be built so as to be just even with the top of the foun- 
dation so that the. entire surface is smooth and easily 
cleaned. Where a cement floor and foundation are 
placed in a house, it is usually better to put in the 
floor before constructing the house." 



XIV 

HOME-MADE CONVENIENCES 

Handy Paneling— Movable Labor Savers — A Makeshift 
Grain Feeder — Vertical Nest Series — Comfort First — 
A Feed Hopper — Swinging Jail for Sitters — Oat- 
sprouting Cabinet — Summer Coop of Wire — Run for 
Small Chicks — An Original Coop — Large Piano-box 
House 

As the average Beginner does not care to make large 
investments till he has tried things out a bit, one of the 
things for him to learn at the start is that some home- 
made contrivance may do just as much good work for 
him as a higher-priced, patented "supply." Some of 
these things may come into hourly use, like a feed 
hopper ; some into daily use ; some only into seasonal 
use, like the wire weaning coop. 

One of the simple things which may come into daily 
use during the chick-raising season is a set of panels, 
two feet, three feet, or four feet wide, it may be. The 
two-foot panels are nearly always made of inch-mesh 
netting, as they are chiefly used to confine small chicks. 
If not told, nearly every poultry raiser learns slowly, 
through experience in spoiling many of his chicks, that 
even the smallest chicks must be confined by an inclos- 
ure that is firm and taut ; and vertical ; else they will 
soon learn to walk it like a tight-rope. If it incline at 
all, it must be inward, at the top. Three panels, made 
of wire net, stapled to one- by two-inch frames braced 
at the middle, may be hinged together. Three strong 

166 



HOME-MADE CONVENIENCES 167 

leather hinges will do, if the hint as to stiff setting of 
the inclosures is strictly followed. Two of these panels 
may be two feet two inches wide and ten or twelve feet 
long. The third may vary in length from the width of 
a coop to any desired length, up to twelve feet. The 
union of the three may form a yard running out from a 
coop or house, or may be used as a triangular yard to 
confine chicks at any desired point. The quality of 
being movable or portable is of very great advantage in 
housing or yarding helps. There is on sale paneled 
wire fencing of this character which is very good indeed. 
It can be made more cheaply by one who is handy, but 
a sample of the sale kind is a good object lesson in 
bracing, which is the key to usefulness in such supplies. 

A small, single panel, smoothly made on three-fourths 
inch framing material to fit the style of coop selected, 
may be the means of saving scores of chicks. These 
are chiefly used to close the coops at night, and they 
cut off all depredation by roaming vermin at night 
or before the owner gets up in the morning. These 
are best fitted to slide behind the slatted coop fronts. 
The worker who does not take great pains to select a 
first-class type of coop, and make them all to one scale, 
so that the panels may fit all the coops, makes an initial 
mistake that may cost him much. 

A makeshift grain feeder, useful especially to those 
who have to be away all day, but good for any poultry 
keeper with a few fowls, consists of a castaway, bottom- 
less pail, to the bottom of which may be wired a pie- 
plate turned bottom upward. A narrow space is left 
between the pail and this loose bottom, so that the pail, 
when moved, will scatter a few grains of feed. The 



i68 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



pail is hung from the ceiling of the house, and the hens 
will "do the rest." The house needs to be well littered, 
in order that the fowls may scratch for what they bring 
down. The cover to the pail may fit as tightly as the 
owner desires. If it is smaller than the pail, the pail 
may be hung a little high, and the birds will fly up and 




Cornell Rat-Proof Feed Hopper Closed. This Reduces Cost of Production 
and May Be Copied 

get some grain that way, at the same time scattering 
more. 

A series of nests which I have used in a small space 
came as the result of necessity. The house I was using 
had not wall space enough for the nests upon the usual 
level. A long, narrow box chanced to be available. 
Instead of placing it horizontally, I set it up on end, 
fitted it with shelves, and nailed front strips to each, thus 
forming nests. Such an arrangement would be an im- 
position on the hens, however, were it not for the alight- 



HOME-MADE CONVENIENCES 



169 



ing stick placed at the base of each nest. These sticks 
are sometimes in the worker's way ; hence, it is wise to 
study the space, and place the series of sticks on the 
side where they will interfere 
the least with moving about. 
If on a side next the roost 
platform, the hens will appre- 
ciate this lift. These nests 
must not be placed too close 
together in the series, as the 
hens would not have room to 
fly up comfortably. 

This is not a small matter. 
On the day I write, I have been 
reading the story of the suc- 
cess of a Beginner's venture in 
poultry. He was not an igno- 
rant Beginner, however, for he 
had taken a College Poultry 
Course, and had practiced much 
and taught somewhat before he 
struck out for himself. He has 
been immediately successful on 
a large scale ; but the thing I 
wish especially to note is that 
every employee on his place is 
trained to think first, last, and 
all the time of the comfort and contentment of the birds. 

A wall feed hopper may be made from a soap box or 
other well-shaped grocery box. It may have one, two, 
or three compartments. The chief trick is in setting 
the diagonal front at the right height and angle to feed 




Make-Shift Series of Nests, 
Placed Vertically 



170 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



down promptly, while yet not too bountifully. One of 
the chief needs, nowadays, is to see that feed boxes of 
this character are rat-proof. The Cornell hopper shows 
how this is managed. Such hoppers, when used, as 
they often are, in feeding dry mash, lead to much waste. 




Wall Dry Feed Hopper. Made from Soap Box 

A flat, shallow box, set below the hopper, may save some 
grain to the birds. 

A convenience needed by every Beginner, and by 
every poultry keeper who hatches with hens, or even 
keeps sitting varieties, is the "jail" for sitters. From 
early June, onward, especially, there will be a continu- 
ous succession of sitters, " repeaters," etc., candidates 
for confinement. "Breaking up" these sitters, or 
" broodies " as some call them, is a continual problem 
to Beginners and to farmers. Sousing with water, 
chasing with dogs, throwing violently from the nest, 
tying by the leg, are not only cruel, but they are not 
efficient methods of saining: the end sought. What the 



HOME-MADE CONVENIENCES 



171 



birds need is a bit of rest, a new idea, and extra food 
enough to give a new fillip to the laying powers. The 
swinging jail supplies the needed opportunities for rest, 
new ideas, etc. ; good feed with plenty of ground oats 
in it will give a new start, and the confinement need not 
be solitary. The " jail " is made slatted on all sides but 




Swinging Home-Made "Jail" for Sitters 

the top. It may be swung from the roof, about a foot 
from the floor ; but, far better, I think, is a position 
under some leafy tree, swinging from a horizontal 
branch. Green feed must not be forgotten. A door in 
the top gives chance to catch the fowls when necessary, 
and cups on the outside may contain the feed and 
water. Sometimes, one board across the short way of 



172 THE BEGINNER JX POULTRY 

the coop gives the birds a better foothold and sitting- 
down place. A little trough may be introduced at feed- 
ing time, when many birds occupy the "jail" at once. 
No poultry raiser should be without this helpful appli- 
ance. 

The cabinet for sprouting oats has become one of 
the regularly offered supplies. Such a cabinet may be 
made by any worker who has more time than money, 
and who needs to furnish extra supplies of green stuff. 
This means virtually all town poultry keepers, and many 
farmers during the winter season. Those who have 
apples, cabbage, clover chaff, etc., can get along without 
sprouted oats ; but the oats form a fine addition to any 
winter ration, and to all rations for fowls in confinement. 
The cabinet consists essentially of a four-square upright 
frame, made with cleats to carry a set of four-inch-deep 
drawers, in which the oats are spread after soaking. 
In winter, some place a lamp in a boxed compartment 
below the drawers for added warmth. 

When we get outside the house into free air where 
the chicks are to be raised, we find several things which 
can be made at home with a saving of money, if time be 
available. The netting weaning coop is one of the most 
desirable aids to raising good birds, as more chicks are 
spoiled during the weeks after weaning than at any other 
time. When left alone to take care of themselves (as 
they think) they are timid, especially at night. Not 
one in the bunch is willing to be exposed to danger on 
the outside, near the front ; hence, they crowd and 
trample for the back corners, and smother on hot nights. 
The coops soon get too small, and this is too apt not to 
be noticed. The birds grow too large for the openings 



HOME-MADE CONVENIENCES 173 

between the coop slats, and hip and back injuries be- 
come common. The remedy is a good-sized weaning 
coop, with a low, broad roost. Entering it in the day- 
time they learn to like the roost, and soon, to use it 
at night, also. Those which do not must be taught to 
do so. 

During the hottest six or eight weeks, my preference 
would be for a coop constructed chiefly of wire except 
for the roof and the side next the prevailing wind, which 
we will make the back. The roof should overhang to 
protect the end birds from rain. This coop may have 
two one-inch by three-inch strips nailed together to form 
each corner angle. A similar strip may be used at the 
top, on both sides and in front. A ten-inch board should 
follow all around the bottom. Such a coop, being so 
light, must be anchored to the ground, or it may become 
a flying machine during any high wind. It may have 
a floor or not, as the owner chooses. Generally, I pre- 
fer a floored coop. The back is to be of matched stuff, 
or carefully battened. If theworker hasbeenforesighted 
enough to plan his early coops on the right scale to per- 
mit this, the panels which closed the baby chicks se- 
curely may now be used as buttoned-in fronts to the 
weaning coops, which will need an upright strip at 
center to help this plan, and also for strength. More 
of these coops throughout the country would mean many 
more good birds in the fall. 

In raising motherless chicks without a brooder, a 
handy inclosure may be made so as to be easily mov- 
able from any spot which has become undesirable, "at 
will ; from soiled ground to clean, from shade to sun, or 
the reverse, from wind to sheltered corner. Half-inch 



174 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

stuff, ten inches wide, with cleats on the ends of each 
board, make the preferred sides. Two boards may be 
ten feet long ; the other two, three feet, more or less. 
Two feet of flooring at one end gives always a dry 
refuge, but the device is helpful without it. A bracing 
cross strip will be needed at the middle. For baby 
chicks, it can be used without a screen top ; but since a 
screen will mean safety from prowlers, it is a wise pre- 
caution to have one. The screen is best made sepa- 
rately, and hooked securely to place. Twenty-five chicks 
may be comfortable and happy for three weeks, under 
such a screen, if the shelter be moved often. They are 
better on wider range, of course, when this is available 
and free ranging is safe. "Hand-raised" chicks can- 
not wisely be given unlimited liberty, because they 
have no center to keep them together, as when there 
is a hen to call them and a place to call "home-and- 
mother." 

An excellent brood coop, two feet by three feet on the 
floor with general form like a shed, may have the two 
back corners cut off, to render it a safer home. If the 
roof projects and is made to fit over the coop proper, it 
will give easy access to the floor for cleaning. By 
clcating, on the under side of the roof, it is made to fit 
very closely. One third the front may be boarded for a 
shelter corner, the rest slatted just closely enough to 
confine the hen, and a netting panel used for night pro- 
tection. The front section has room behind it for this 
panel to slide in. The roof is removable. 

Piano boxes, both upright and laid flatwise, are much 
used by those who can secure them. They cost a little 
more than half as much as new lumber in some localities. 



176 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

One poultryman of my acquaintance, Mr. C. K. Vander- 
bilt, built a house for two hundred hens, using piano 
boxes entirely for the siding. The house is 16 feet by 
65 feet, with incubator cellar 15 feet by 16 feet; milling 
room and grain storage of the same. size. It took about 
seventy-five piano boxes for material. The house is 
8 feet high in front and has muslin front " windows." 



XV 

THE IDEAL BIRD 

The Good Pullet — Lusty Strength Based on Proper Food 
— Exercise and Health — Three Methods — Rosy 
Stories — Age of Maturity — The Fancier's Ideal — 
Intrinsic Value — Judgment of Quality — The Average 
Bird a Unit of Measure 

To the egg farmer, his precious maturing pullets are 
the delight of life and the objects of keenest care. On 
them will depend his winter income. On their earliness, 
thrift, and general well-being, his hopes are founded. It 
has been said elsewhere that the Beginner's first busi- 
ness was to learn to raise good birds. The difference 
in results between a good and a poor pullet is often the 
difference between money in and money out during the 
long winter. He whose pullets are a source of money 
out, throughout the long winter, while bringing nothing 
in, will soon become skeptical as to the profits in poultry 
keeping. 

A good pullet is well grown, thrifty, full of vitality, 
active and eager in temperament, and usually a hustler 
after food. Breed characteristics make some difference, 
but the pullet which is active for her feed is more likely 
to make the satisfactory layer. This eager activity de- 
pends far more largely on the perfection of health and 
a keen appetite than most people imagine. The real 
work of developing a crack pullet lies in so feeding her 
that she will eat every ounce possible, while still not 
overeating. Overfeeding and ill-balanced feeding tend 

N I77 



1 7 8 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



to heaviness and laziness ; these, in time, tend toward 
barrenness and general unthrift. The animal economy 
calls for food just balanced, to its needs, whether those 
needs be bare existence, growth, active exercise, or re- 
production. And it is one of the laws of animal being 

that lusty strength 
to produce many 
and vigorous prog- 
eny rests on the 
simple basis of 
proper food, com- 
bined with suffi- 
cient free exercise. 
The invigorating 
and stimulating 
power of exercise, 
its warming, digest- 
ing, and cleansing 
c t> i t> t u v r i a powers, its preven- 

Head of Rose Comb Brown Leghorn Male, Ap- r r 

proaching the Ideal. Wattles Not So Well tion of Crop-bound, 
Rounded As Standard Demands. Note Look j- u~.~ u~ 

of strength dianhoea, iheuma- 

tism, cramps, and 
in young chicks, leg weakness, are a long list of credits ; 
when we add that by keeping mind and body occupied, 
it prevents the formation of bad habits, such as feather 
pulling, comb picking, "cannibalism," egg eating, and 
that it also prevents gorging and logy breaking down, 
works off surplus fat, makes eggs more fertile and in- 
sures stronger chicks, we have a table of values which 
Beginners and old hands alike may well look over fre- 
quently ; /est they forget ! 

Every Beginner, who is raising his first flock, has three 




THE IDEAL BIRD 1 79 

chances. First, he may produce a lot of pullets, rang- 
ing from very poor to very good, and carry them all 
through the winter. Second, he may raise about the 
same number and kind and cull sharply, carrying only 
the strictly good through to the next year. Third, he 
may handle his advance work so well and so intelligently 
that he will have very little culling to do, nearly all his 
pullets being of the grade which will pay to keep over. 
In the first case he is doomed to pay money out all 
winter, with infinitesimal returns. In the second, he 
will get fair returns above expenses, if the birds were 
early hatched. In the third instance his outgoes may 
be large, but his income will be larger, and only in this 
case will his hopes be fulfilled. This third method is 
fully possible only to the one who holds control of the 
stock which laid the eggs to produce his pullets. Cull- 
ing properly begins with the breeding stock. In the 
farm flock, every bird is usually a breeding bird. If 
every breeding bird is active and vigorous, there need 
be no cull pullets when the chicks are handled with 
sufficient judgment and care. But if any of the breeders 
are below par in physical vigor, no care of the chicks 
can make them all first class. 

The rosy stories of pullets laying when fourteen to 
twenty weeks old, so often told, become a stumbling- 
block to all Beginners. The quick maturing Leghorns 
and their kind should lay earlier than the Asiatics, but 
the ideal pullet does not lay too early. In reviewing 
the catalogue of a breeder who claims wonderful laying 
records, I was struck with the sentence : " Not one of 
these laid an egg before the middle of December." Run- 
ning over the topics in " 999 Questions and Answers " 



180 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

I find this on early laying of pullets : " It depends to 
some extent upon the breed and very largely upon the 
care and feeding from hatching time till maturity. Un- 
der the most favorable conditions, pullets should begin 
to lay at about eight months of age." This is the most 
conservative statement I have ever seen in print. Most 
such answers affirm that the birds should lay at about 
five to six months. I think the extended experience of 
most growers will show rather that seven months is a 
very common maturity age. This means that birds which 
are to begin even as early as mid-December must be 
hatched by mid-May. 

There is only one point in which good pullets fail. 
In the breeding pen, while many thousands of pullets 
produce their quota of eggs for hatching every year, and 
many of them produce good chicks, the chances are in 
favor of the yearling or two-year hen, with a cockerel 
well toward a year old, producing better ones. " The 
best is good enough for me " is not a bad motto for any 
poultry keeper. One who takes this for his poultry 
motto will not try to raise chicks from immature poultry. 
Older birds will have been tested at least through one 
full season, and any short of full vigor will have been 
called out. This insures better average vigor in the 
chicks than can be obtained with immature, untested 
birds. Such tested hens, which have been tested at 
the same time for digestive and laying capacities, will 
do much towards growing chicks and matured fowls to 
reach the ideal of the motto, both as to vigor and as to 
producing capacity. 

In the eyes of the utility worker, the ideal bird is 
typified by the specimen in the prime of health, matu- 



THE IDEAL BIRD 



181 



rity, and vigor, and capable of fullest productive capacity. 
But to the fancier this bird is only half ideal. To the 




"The Beauties of Symmetry : " White Leghorn, Nearly Ideal 

beauty of health and vigor he desires to add the beauties 
of symmetry and of outward coloring. Some one says, 
" The ideal bird must combine in its make-up both fancy 
and utility points." Some deny the possibility of this. 



1 82 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

(In another chapter I have shown the difficulties attend- 
ing the attempt thus to combine beauty and work-a-day 
qualities.) Yet, since beauty becomes but ugliness with- 
out the lovely bloom of health, this health must be basic 
for the fancier. And since the utility quality of egg 
laying is an absolute necessity to the continuance of her 
kind, his exhibition female is decidedly lowered in both 
intrinsic and extrinsic value if she be not a good layer. 
A mid-West judge recently stated that some exhibition 
specimens of a heavy laying breed which he had obtained 
from the breeders of "the best," in the fancier's point 
of view, were " simply worthless " as egg producers. 
This is the result that may be expected to follow surely 
upon the attempt to create an ideal bird by breeding 
solely to the beauty standard. 

What is an ideal Wyandotte ? Is it the chalk-plum- 
aged, short " refuse" specimen, resultant from the effort 
to fill the demand for an all-white, short-bodied, blocky, 
bird ideal ? The Wyandotte is the blocky bird par ex- 
cellence. But it is utter folly to reshape her till she is 
longer from breast to back than from front to rear, and 
to ruin her laying capacity while creating a monstrous 
freak. The ideal bird is never a freak ; there is no de- 
mand for freaks among the sane who work toward ideals ; 
even beauty freaks — if such can be — are barred ! 

Judgment as to quality is a thing of growth. It 
comes through daily seeing, handling, and comparing 
the birds. The feathers are so deceptive, that in order 
to know the condition of the utility chick or fowl, one 
must accustom himself to the feel of the body, under 
the feathers. By handling many birds many times, 
one acquires, in time, a sure judgment as to condition, 



1 84 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



weight, plumpness, etc. The position of prominent, 
movable bones back of the keel is considered a pretty- 
fair index of the approach of laying maturity, or of lay- 
ing at any time. As the body is distending, or becomes 




"The White Queen. 



This Bird Has Been Used as a Model of Runner Type. 
Photograph Not Retouched 



distended, with eggs, these bones spread apart springily. 
This spreading is probably a sure index of the approach 
of laying. But, as these bones naturally lie farther apart 
in some birds than in others, it is necessary to be some- 



THE IDEAL BIRD 185 

what familiar with the breed and the individual birds in 
order to make the test a sure one. 

In the same way, a mental " unit of measure " becomes 
the possession of the fancier who lives through many 
months with his birds. The unit of measure is the 
average bird. The fancier has to acquire a keen judg- 
ment as to how each' individual bird compares in value 
with the average specimen, and also how far it is below 
the ideal of its breed, either for the breeding pen or the 
show room. Most fanciers would prefer the bird that 
was pretty good in all sections to one that was exception- 
ally good in some sections while notably poor in others. 
The poultry publications which publish the best unre- 
touched photographs are of much value to the Beginner, 
because of these alone ; they offer him good birds from 
which to make comparisons. In his own yards, he may 
not have them because of a restricted purse ; and if he 
has them, he cannot know it until he either exhibits or 
studies birds of known value till he has formed a basis 
for judgment. 



XVI 

LINE BREEDING AND MENDEL'S LAW 

Root Meaning of Special Terms — Multiplied Ancestors 
for Every Bird — Giving a Fowl Fewer Ancestors — 
Possible Evils — The Emphatic Point — The Theory 
of Line Breeding — Double Mating — Applied Heredity 
— Color Domination — Scope of Mendel's Law — Its 
Limits — Brevity Points 

If you are a fancier just budding, you will be looking 
over everything you can find about breeding, and will 
often stumble upon the expressions, " line breeding," 
" Mendel's law," "atavism," " strain," etc. While these 
words are in the dictionaries, poultry keepers sometimes 
shade the meanings a little, and, in order that we may 
have them grouped together, I will give the root mean- 
ing of each of several terms which are almost sure to be 
used in any discussion of this kind. 

Strictly speaking, the word " hybrid " means the 
progeny of a union of two species ; "mongrel," that of 
the union of two breeds. A " cross " is a mixing of 
stock, " a hybrid of any kind." A " mongrel " is also 
the progeny of a cross of any kind. "Inbreeding" is 
breeding together animals that are closely related. An 
" outcross," according to Professor Pierce, Poultry In- 
structor of Iowa State College, is the result of breeding 
together birds of different varieties, or even different 
il strains y A "strain" is the resultant of inbreeding, 
more or less, together with selection. When birds of 
any flock have been selected for certain qualities and 

1 86 



LINE BREEDING AND MENDEL'S LAW 187 

bred together till they bear a family likeness easily 
noted, they may be properly called a "strain." The 
Standard of Perfection calls it "a family bred in line." 
" Atavism " is what poultrymen often call " throwing 
back " or " jumping back." It is reversion to the traits 
of ancestors, perhaps far back. 

One who has not thought much along these lines 
needs first to grasp the fact of multiplicity of ancestors 
behind each of his fowls. A certain pet of yours, 
shall we say, had a father and a mother. So had the 
father; so had the mother. Here are seven birds. 
The four grandparents had each two immediate parents; 
this makes fifteen. The eight great grandparents had 
each two immediate parents, making sixteen more. The 
next step back gives thirty-two more. Here, in four 
steps backward, if there has been no close breeding, we 
find sixty-two ancestors of your pet. In a smaller degree 
it is the " melting pot " over again ; each fowl has an 
infinite number of ancestors, and is the sum of the traits 
of her ancestral family. But this family is a combina- 
tion, it may be, of hundreds of families — of thousands ! 
Who shall say how many? Is it any wonder that you 
cannot make the descendants of your pet what you will, 
when you have to combat constantly characteristics 
continually recurrent from the past, which to you now 
seem faults? 

Line breeding, to put it into clear and common terms, 
is simply an effort to give a fowl fewer ancestors. This 
is done by breeding her to another which has — at least 
in part — the same ancestors. Three results may be 
counted on : (a) the intensifying of faults ; (b) the inten- 
sifying of virtues ; (c) the lessening of vigor, unless 



1 88 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

exceptional care is taken. The Cornell professors say, 
in a Bulletin on Breeding for Constitutional Vigor: 
" Close breeding can be followed with success only when 
the first consideration is given to mating strong individ- 
uals." A. S. Galbraith, the English poultry expert, 
arguing for inbreeding, even to produce heavy egg 
production, tells of an experiment of his own. Only 
eggs from the best layers were set. Every hen laying 
even one infertile egg during the laying season was re- 
jected ; also, every one which had ever been ailing, though 
but for a few hours. Not one exception was allowed. 
I emphasize this, because the tendency of Beginners, 
and of most breeders, one may admit, is to allow excep- 
tions that spoil the work attempted, usually because the 
exceptions are well up in fancy points. 

" Prepotency," the capacity of any parent to transmit 
his qualities to his progeny (more than his share, the 
dictionaries say), varies in different birds. It may be 
intensified by inbreeding. Professor Pierce states the 
danger thus : "Persistent, close inbreeding, such as the 
mating of brother and sister for several generations, 
often results in impaired fecundity, loss of size, and 
decrease in constitution and vigor." Poultrymen call 
such repetition of inbreeding " in-and-inbreeding." 
The closest form is the mating of brother to sister, as they 
have the same full parentage. Three lines of the same 
blood may be started and carried by a line breeder : one 
by mating brother to sister ; one by mating father to 
daughter ; a third by mating mother with son. The 
progeny are then bred together, to suit the theories and 
plans of the breeder. Many years ago, Mr. I. K. Felch 
published a chart, showing how the three lines of related 



LINE BREEDING AND MENDEL'S LAW 



189 



blood might be bred together, to get any desired union 
of the two blood lines of the original pair. Pro; 




Near-Perfection to Start With. (Courtesy of M. R. Jacobus, New Jersey; 

W. H. Card has recently devised a new chart with the 
same object. 

Probably the point which needs most emphasis when 
we talk to the Beginner about how he can best essay 
line breeding, is that he needs, more than any other one 



l 9 o THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

thing, to have an original pair as nearly perfect as pos- 
sible. Plainly, this must be so ; because, he is setting 
out on a course which will not only intensify virtues, 
but defects as well. The fewer defects he has to start 
with, the fewer to trouble him later. Vigor, in both, he 
must have; perfection in both, is only a dream. Close 
approach to perfection, however, is usually a matter of 
dollars and cents. Good breeders will mate a pair for a 
customer who wishes to enter upon line breeding ; they 
will, doubtless, also charge him well for the birds. Or, 
if he buy a good breeder's best eggs, he may get some- 
thing from them to suit his need; but while he is yet 
only a Beginner, it is not safe for him to trust his own 
estimate of the birds. 

Theoretically, a defect in the male may be balanced 
by especially good points in the female, in the section 
concerned. Then, if the defect should appear in the 
progeny, a mating from that one of the lines which was 
best in that section ought to "balance" it. In effect, 
however, that which is expected from a mating does not 
always appear, because of that uncontrollable factor, 
atavism, whereby the bird throws back to an ancestor, 
more or less remote. 

It has been said that no noted prize-winning family in 
any line of live stock has been established without re- 
sorting to inbreeding, and that the greatest success has 
always attended that systematic form of inbreeding 
known as line breeding. When a breeder has really 
established a line-bred strain of stock, one that meets 
his ideals, he is ready to reap great rewards for his in- 
telligent work. " There is no satisfactory excuse or 
argument that can be offered by those who refuse to 



LINE BREEDING AND MENDEL'S LAW 191 

follow line breeding," says one enthusiast. It enables 
the breeder to add, at any time, from one sixteenth to 
eleven sixteenths of the blood of either parent, and he 
can mate the original blood as it appears in descendants 
who are one half of each. Perhaps the most difficult 
part of the whole work is in keeping the pedigree and 
marking records exact and complete. 

Double mating has long been the hoodoo of the Be- 
ginner ; and this, despite the fact that leading breeders 
are fast to say that there is no other way to produce 
winners of both sexes in parti-colored breeds. Double 
mating means that different types of birds are used to 
produce exhibition males and exhibition females. It also 
means that half the birds in each mating (the females, 
when one has a cockerel mating, etc.) are rank culls. It 
also means many more pens, more complexity, many more 
sets of birds, because the exhibition male is not fit for the 
breeding pen, in many cases. It means disaster to the 
Beginner, unless he can put himself into the hands of a 
reliable breeder, who will mate birds for him and coach 
him as to how he shall mate the progeny. The Beginner 
who buys birds of unknown breeding, because they look 
well, has a worse proposition than any in mathematics. 
If they have been double mated, and he mates good birds 
with good birds expecting to get good birds of both sexes, 
he gets — chaos ! And this both of mind and of stock. 
For every breed in which double mating is practiced, the 
rules for mating must be carefully learned. To learn as 
one goes along will take a lifetime. The Beginner's 
only safety is in learning all he can about double mating 
before buying, and then buying from a breeder of probity 
who will assist him toward success. 



19- 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



That rediscovery of recent years known as " Men- 
del's law " is still a bone of contention. To name it, 
in some quarters, is to stir up vigorous protest. " It 
won't work," say a few, who think themselves fitted to 
pass judgment. Yet, if it be a real law, it may prove of 
so much basic importance to the breeder that I do not 
wish to omit giving a little insight into it. A law must 
always produce the same results under the same condi- 
tions. Those who question this law of Mendel's say 
that it does not always hold good, as formulated; which 
is virtually the same as saying that it is not a law of 
Nature, at least, when applied to animals. It was first 
offered as a law for plants. 

However, Harper s Magacijie for December, 1908, 
contained an article entitled " Applied Heredity," by 
R. C. Punnett, M.A., a Cambridge University man. 
Referring to the paper in which Gregor Mendel, an 
Austrian monk, gave to the world the results of his 
work of research and experimentation, he says it is one 
that " for magnitude of issue, can be compared only with 
William Harvey's classic treatise on the circulation of 
the blood." Because this especial writer is willing to go 
on record with this straight-out affirmation : " The prin- 
ciples he enunciated have been shown to hold good for 
animals as well as plants," I shall base this brief no- 
tice of Mendel's law largely on Mr. Punnett's review 
of its working out. There is, too, another reason. It 
lies in the fact that he takes a fowl, the Rose-Comb 
Bantam, to illustrate the law. This breed, having both 
a white and a black variety, and breeding true in both, 
forms an accurate and convenient example. 

A tendency which we may call color domination has 



LINE BREEDING AND MENDEL'S LAW 



193 



much to do with modifying results. Should we cross 
the black and the white bantams, the resulting progeny 
would be, as to appearance, all black. In this, black is 
said to be dominant over white — white is spoken of as 
recessive ; since it disappears in the first generation of 
the progeny. But lo ! if we breed birds of this first 
generation together, this recessive reappears in a cer- 
tain fairly fixed proportion of about 25 per cent. These 
white birds will thenceforward breed only white stock. 
The 75 per cent of blacks, however, are of two kinds as 
to tendency ; they behave differently. These are dis- 
tinguished as (a) "pure dominants," and (fi) "impure 
dominants." The pure dominants give only blacks 
thenceforward, even when mated with white birds. The 
impure dominants, like their parents, give three blacks 
to one white, in the progeny. 

It is explained that the two germs which unite (the 
male and the female germ) to form any new individual, 
are transmitted as entities or units, and not as a com- 
bination. That is, no germ cell can carry both black 
and white ; it must be either "a black germ" or "a 
white germ," as one may say. If both the meeting 
germs which unite to form the new individual are 
" white," nothing but white can be produced. If both 
are "black," nothing but pure blacks can be produced. 
In effect, the father and mother cells are then pure 
blacks and give only blacks. If there are an equal num- 
ber of each color produced by each parent, the above 
accounts for all unions of the same kind of germ cells. 
But what would you expect, if the black of the mala 
chanced to meet the white of the female ? Would you 
say gray ? Not so Nature. Since they are transmitted, 



I 9 4 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

not as a combination, but as units, we may say striving for 
place, the black, being dominant to white, is the victor, 
and all the resultant progeny are black. The germ cells 
of the progeny are part pure white and part pure black, 
as in the parents, but in both parents and progeny, the 
25 per cent of pure blacks added to the impure blacks 
give 75 per cent of blacks to 25 per cent of whites. 
Because this percentage is sustained, it is believed that 
all the hybrids of pure black and pure white have equal 
numbers of pure "white" and pure "black" germ cells. 
Whenever, upon union, each parent furnishes a " black " 
germ, the resulting progeny is pure black ; whenever 
each furnishes a pure " white " germ, the resulting 
progeny is pure white. But whenever one furnishes 
a " black" and the other a " white " germ, the oppor- 
tunity for variants is given. And, because black is 
dominant, and each parent has one half its germs of 
the dominant black, black overcomes the white. We 
may show it in this way : — 

I Black, joined to Black, gives Black. 
White, joined to White, gives White. 
Black (dominant), joined to White, gives Black. 

It has been found, on rather wide trial, that structure, 
size, shape, color, and fertility in plants, and numerous 
characteristics in animals come under this law. In 
sweet peas, color is dominant to white ; tallness is 
dominant to dwarfness. The crossing of tall and 
dwarf sorts will, therefore, give three fourths tall in the 
progeny. " The long, Angora hair is recessive to short 
hair in rabbits," etc. The Cambridge University Experi- 
ment farm began, some years ago, experiments to transfer 
immunity to rust to the best varieties of wheat, accord- 



LINE BREEDING AND MENDEL'S LAW 195 

ing to the Mendelian law, with excellent results. The 
polled character in cattle has been found dominant to 
the horned characteristic. Thus is offered a painless 
method of " dehorning." Mr. Punnett says : " Man, too, 
is subject to those same laws of heredity that govern the 
transmission of characters in plants and in other ani- 
mals." I mention this here in the hope that it may 
help to stimulate any reader who may find the law not 
clear, to make special effort to grasp and understand it. 
A law of breeding that touches all the plant and animal 
kingdom gives man a grasp of all breeding problems 
which makes him almost a divine Creator. 

Although I have not seen it so stated, it looks to me, 
on examination of the illustrations given, that dominance 
usually belongs to the characteristic longest fixed in the 
subjects. We might perhaps expect that this would be 
true. The use of this law is limited by the stated fact 
that not all characteristics come under its working. 
Those which do are first sought. When found, says 
Punnett : " Knowledge of the Mendeliap principles will 
enable him [the experimenter] to combine them together 
according to his will, and to build up and fix a plant or 
animal having the properties which he considers most to 
be desired." 

All this is pertinent to the Beginner in a point where 
he often runs amuck ; and this, even though he do not 
understand the working of the law. It is said that a 
cross between certain strains of white fowls known to 
breed true, results in the production of birds entirely 
colored and very like the original ancestor of all, the 
black-red fowl. Probably there are few poultry raisers 
who have not, when in the novice stage, gone to some 



196 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

expert to ask whether the appearance of color among 
his white birds, or of white among those which should 
not show white, was not sure proof of impurity. It is 
proof of some sort of a throwback, doubtless. But, if it 
be true that all our breeds go back to the black-red 
jungle fowl, who is to say from how far back what seems 
an abnormality now may come ! 

H. L. Allen, in a sensible article on inbreeding, says : 
" On the moderate scale which has characterized my own 
inbreeding operations, I have found line breeding as I 
have attempted to describe it here a most satisfactory 
method for producing a flock of birds year after year 
that will adhere closely to the type desired, and with 
fewer reversions to the earlier type, which, even in our 
oldest breeds, was existent not so many years ago." 

General estimate of the value of line breeding has long 
limited its value to those who were striving to produce 
fancy stock. As its possibilities open with study, with 
experiment, and with the discovery of unsuspected laws 
of breeding, such as Mendel's law, discussed above, 
poultrymen are beginning to systematize their ideas, and 
to see that there ought to be possibilities in a breeding 
law that Would help the market poulterer and the egg 
producer as well as the fancier. In Australia, poultry 
egg producers have for some time been breeding in line 
to produce strains of unusually prolific layers. This has 
worked, along with the competitive tests, to increase the 
general egg-laying productiveness of Australian birds. 

Over in New Zealand, the man who claims the Indian 
Runner with the stupendous record of 320 eggs, states 
that he has not only worked up one strain by line breed- 
ing, but carries several others of entirely different blood, 



LINE BREEDING AND MENDEL'S LAW 197 

all line-bred strains, in order to save himself from dis- 
aster if he should by chance fail with the first. The 
idea that the same laws can be used to produce the kind 
of market fowl which the country or the choice of the 
handler demands is slowly permeating the thinking of 
the poultry contingent. Despite our belief in the old 
proverb that like produces like, there was a stumbling- 
block somewhere, and for many years no one could find 
just where it lay. Apparently at random, like produced 
unlike upon occasion. With a law that shows under 
just what circumstances like will produce unlike, we 
have the key to the situation. Our proverb may be 
useful after all. 

Brevity Points 

Every bird will inherit from the heads of the line. 

Close interbreeding may intensify defects as well as 
virtues. 

Selection culls out defects ; selection holds virtues. 
(Application limited.) 

Narrow head, small comb, for the breed, lack of size 
or color mean lack of vigor ; strength of color in eye, 
face, furnishings, and plumage denote vigor; as does 
also a strong voice. 

Extra size, color, vigor, are demanded in the founda- 
tion birds of a line. 

It is folly to breed from a bird lacking in size, weight, 
color, or "snap." Intelligence, interest in food, in life, 
and in people are marks of thoroughly good stock. 

Extra size, vigor, color, are demanded for the birds 
which are of the Line Foundation. They must be of 



I 9 8 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

the type one strives for, whether it be an egg, a meat, 
or a superior exhibition type. 

It is utter folly to line breed from a poor bird — a bird 
lacking in any essential point. 

It is poor judgment to breed from a bird whose own 
ancestry is poor. 

It is folly to breed from a bird with narrow head, or 
from a female giving eggs poorly shaped, poor in shell or 
color, or lacking in size. 

It is folly to breed too near the danger line. 

It is folly not to cull sharply. 



XVII 

RECORDS FOR FUTURE STUDY 

A Man's Poultry Past — Stopping the Leaks — The Be- 
ginner and " Systems " — " Hovering " The Chicks — 
Methods not Feasible — Income versus Outgo — 
Trap Nesting — Good Dollars Eaten — A Beginner's 
Success 

If there is any one person, who, more than others, 
needs to keep accurate accounts for his own sake, and 
to refer to them often, it is the Beginner. In justice to 
him, I will say that he is usually pretty faithful to 




How Not to Do It. Neglect and Filthy Soil. Study This "Record " Well 

the former part of this proposition, — more so than 
the "old hand." But, there is little value to a record 
that is not studied. Any one will be apt to study a 
record of unquestioning success, study it even gloatingly. 

199 



200 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Yet, for purposes of education, a record of failure is oflcn 
far more valuable than a record of success. 

Nothing less than the facts and figures spread nakedly 
before him will enable one who has not been successful 
to ferret out the real points of difficulty. But the one 
who fails is too often the very one who has not courage 
to look at his poultry past ! 

It is not merely that one ought to know whether or 
not the stock as a whole, or any special side line, has 
paid fair returns on whatever of money, time, or strength 
has been spent in its interest. But, if it have not done 
so, one must be able to find out just what caused the 
leaks. For "leaks," in any business which deals with 
very numerous items or entities, are the most dangerous 
and uncertain things with which one must deal. And, 
it is just this one key fact, viz., that he cannot find 
and stop the leaks, that often makes one man a failure 
as a poultry handler, while his near neighbor makes 
money "hand over hand." 

A stranger wrote me out of the depths of experience a 
story of initial success, followed by failure almost abso- 
lute. This is so unusual that it was no wonder he felt hu- 
miliated, and was on his mettle to re-reverse the situation. 
Yet, as I reviewed his story, I saw that he had failed at 
the very point where the Near-Beginner is always prone 
to fail, — that is, at the point where he begins to increase 
largely. This worker, however, had not struck quite the 
usual snags. 

His story was that he began with a small flock of In- 
dian Runners. He was fortunate in getting the white 
egg strain, from the original importations from England, 
where these ducks have been bred for scores of years. 



202 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

His birds exceeded all his expectations as producers, and, 
naturally, he increased his numbers. He was just a 
plain farmer, working for market eggs, but his success 
outdistanced anything else of which I ever heard. In- 
creasing up to 1 1 5 stock ducks, he reported having 
gathered, daily, for more than a month in succession, an 
average of 112 eggs. This was a marvelous product, 
even in the best month of spring. Just at this time, his 
evil genius suggested that he get some outside, new 
blood. Not knowing of the two types, he acquired some 
males which changed his flock to green-egg producers, 
and reduced the yield very greatly. Thoroughly dis- 
gusted, he tried a Pekin cross, which was also disappoint- 
ing in the extreme. The last I heard from him was that 
he had just discovered the reason for his failures, and was 
on the warpath for some pure-bred, white-egg Runners, 
once more. 

Increase of stock is, in itself, a very healthful sign. 
But, too rapid increase, or ignorant increase is often 
fatal. It is here that records help again. The cause of 
the fatalities connected with increase of stock nearly al- 
ways lies in the fact that the handler does not manage as 
he did at the first. Of course, large numbers are neces- 
sarily managed somewhat differently from small lots, as 
to detail work, hut principles cannot change, and whenever 
the handling of the increase bumps up against a principle 
of working that made for the worker his earlier successes, 
he is in line for failure. For instance, large flocks foul 
the soil incredibly soon ; large flocks of uneven birds 
crowd and trample all but the fighting percentage ; 
large flocks deplete the bank account most painfully in 
the off season. At this time, it is of great value to have 



RECORDS FOR FUTURE STUDY 



203 



a book of records of happenings and of work, and, if 
possible, of averages, which may be studied for the clew 
to success with the larger venture. 

The trap nest is a simple thing, but the Beginner may 
simply stand still and mark time if he fail to appreciate 
its value. I do not believe that the common man can 
afford to bother with trap nests, all the time, and for all 
his fowls. But the use of a set of trap nests with one 
pen of fowls for a season or two will teach one effectively 
many things which others have tried to teach him, without 
having been able to make their words striking enough to 
reach his real consciousness. An essential thing to learn 
is the necessity of finding how to increase the income 
without also increasing the outgo. It costs quite nearly 
the same to maintain the idle hen, the fairly good layer, 
and the rarely good one. But the extra good layer must 
have an extra good appetite ; she must eat, not only the 
maintenance ration, but enough more for the manufac- 
ture of her output of eggs, whatever it may be as to 
number. As the egg may range from 65.5 to 75.8 water 
(Atwater's figures), the amount of feed required by the 
layer above that taken by the idler who merely eats for 
the fun of it need not be considered excessive. But, she 
must be a good eater with a good digestion, or she cannot 
be a good layer. 

The trap nest will show some surprising things. You 
may have a lot of hens, looking fairly alike, which are, 
you think, doing reasonably good average work. The 
trap may show you that while you are averaging, they 
are not ; they are individualizing. One is, perhaps, 
doing nothing, at least two thirds of the year ; another 
is not so bad, but still much below your averages ; one 



204 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



or two, doubtless, are doing phenomenally good laying. 
Nothing else could impress this fact on the consciousness 
of a Beginner so forcibly as a bit of demonstration work 
I saw at the New York State Fair in 191 1. It consisted 




Home-Madc Trap-Nest Series. Rear Doors, entered from Platform, Swing 
Inward. Similar Doors in Front, Swing Outward. Hen Leaves Nest at 
Will, Entering Confining Pen 

simply of three " Record hens " and their respective out- 
put. The output was shown in wire net receptacles, and 
was seen at a glance. One of these contained eight eggs ; 
a second contained one hundred twenty-eight eggs ; the 
third contained one hundred seventy-five eggs. Any 
Beginner, pondering on reasons why some people con- 
tend that poultry does not pay, while others demonstrate 
that it does, needs only to figure the difference in gross 
returns from the hen that lays eight eggs a year and the 
one that lays one hundred seventy-five a year, in order 



RECORDS FOR FUTURE STUDY 205 

to pounce on that elusive " reason." Tflis is, of course, 
an extreme illustration ; all the more, it shows most viv- 
idly just what I mean. On the day before this writing, 
I read a report from a woman poultry raiser, claiming 
that her flock of seventy hens had averaged two hundred 
forty eggs during a year. No one has ever ventured 
to tell me such a story face to face ; but, between an 
actual eight on one hand and a possible (or impossible) 
two-hundred-forty average on the other, there ought 
to be a safe place for the sole of the feet, even of the 
shaky Beginner. 

Professor Dryden, of Oregon Agricultural College, re- 
ports a Plymouth Rock trap-nested hen making a record 
of two hundred fifty-nine eggs in twelve months. 
" In the same pen with the record Plymouth Rock hen," 
he says, " we had one which laid but six eggs, although 
she was of the same breed and received the same care 
and feed. The trouble was in her heredity." 

There are many who say that the phenomenal layer 
is not at all likely to reproduce herself ; that her undue 
amount of work is such a strain upon the reproductive 
organs that she will produce eggs not hatchable, or will 
produce weaklings. That will depend somewhat on her 
handler. If he, finding her value, pushes her to the 
verge of exhaustion in trying to get a few more eggs, 
she may become worthless as a producer of stock. Or, 
if the egg organs are not perfect, or the digestion be 
affected by the strain (shown by the droppings), she may 
not reproduce well. But if she lays an egg perfect in 
shell and her droppings are well shaped, with the bright, 
white cap, I say she will give you as many chicks as the 
next one. Thatisnot saying they will all be like her. But 



206 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

if you mate her best daughters with a son who resembles 
her in general, I think you can make progress. 

At any rate, it is good sense to reproduce from the 
best all-around stock you have. A bird good in only 
one or two points is not a desirable breeder, whether for 
Utility or for fancy. The one practical and sure way to 
follow this out is to trap nest. If you do this, you will 
know far more about each hen's individual peculiarities, 
because you will observe her far more closely. I have 
known farmers, having cross-bred or mongrel stock, to 
select roughly from outward appearance and noticing 
which hens laid oftenest. This rule of thumb is worth 
something, but it is far from equal to trap nesting. And 
no one can guess how really inaccurate it is until he has 
done some trap nesting. He will then find that circum- 
stances have often deceived him. 

The trap nest has its undoubted faults : the nervous 
hen is fretted by it ; the more " stupid" one may persist 
in laying anywhere but within its narrow confines. But 
any one who has studied fowls will have learned that he 
must train them to trap nesting as he trains them into all 
other desirable habits. " Make it easy to do the right 
thing and difficult to do the wrong " is good counsel, 
whether dealing with man or bird or beast. Trap nests 
must be used without the traps until the fowls are fully 
accustomed to their use, and no other nests must be al- 
lowed in the pens. And if you, by chance, have shut 
your hens in, several days before you furnished them 
nests, never presume to blame them thereafter for laying 
in the litter ! 

The selection of the kind of trap is a matter of some 
importance. Those having a detention pen into which 



RECORDS FOR FUTURE STUDY 



207 



the layers pass after laying are probably the best. If 
this pen be common to several traps, one identifies his 
layers fairly well, but in case a hen leaves the trap with- 
out having laid, he cannot identify her surely. A sec- 
ondary pen for each nest is the most thorough, accurate, 
and comfortable combination. But, in using this form, 
one doesn't want to trap nest large numbers. 

An actual report of results, offered the public, reads 
something like this : " Hen No. 5 laid 250 eggs from 
September, 1909, to September, 1910. Three of her eggs 
weighed half a pound. Hen No. 6 laid 258 eggs from 
October, 1909, to October, 1910. Twenty hens laid an 
average of 209 eggs in 1909." 

Dates, months, number of eggs of individuals, and 
averages ! These data cannot be given accurately unless 
there is an honest trap-nest system, with an honest, 
faithful, and accurate handler ; no guesses, no mistakes. 
No such high records can by any possibility be gained 
without a painstaking, quiet handler who is also a good 
feeder, and hens selected for constitutional vigor and for 
eating capacity. 

We have with us always the Beginner who wants 
to raise poultry for fun or for family needs, and who 
has bowed to the dictum of the experienced to begin 
carefully, even though he wish to become the wonder 
of the countryside eventually. ..Unfortunately, we have, 
also, the man with the very large ideas which refuse 
to be cabined and confined, who fully expects to show 
all those heretofore in the industry what very poor 
business men and poultry raisers they are. He scorns 
to figure in anything less than thousands. His only 
road to success lies in the fortunate securing of a first- 



208 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

class, fairly conservative poultryman, to whom he may 
possibly have sufficient sense to defer. 

The Beginner who is willing to take small risks until 
the time when his planning gives reasonable promise 
of being successful may be pretty sure of making an 
eventual sweep of the good things of poultrydom. 

A sentence from a published report of an editorial 
visit to an advertiser's poultry farm is exceedingly 
illuminating. " Two things surprised me greatly on 
Mr. X's farm : first, the comparatively small number 
of birds raised ; and, second, the wonderful average 
quality." This report referred to a fancier's opera- 
tions. But the same result will often follow those of 
the small worker in just market stock, or layers of 
table eggs. One who raises but a few young birds 
is more than usually sure to raise birds of high average 
quality. If room is at a premium, selection will be 
much more rigid, and a small flock is likely to get 
better care and to be free from most of the handicaps 
which inevitably belong to large flocks. 

Records of laying, records of purchase and sale, 
records, even, of the weather have a value to the Be- 
ginner far above that which they may have to one 
who is entirely familiar with the operations which make 
for profit. It is quite certain, however, that the latter 
reached his enviable condition through the aid of rec- 
ords kept when he, too, was a Beginner. 

To keep a record of outgoes, without one also of 
incomes, is to become a detractor of the hen. Not to 
keep records at all, but to stand helpless by and see 
good dollars (worth of feed) thrown to insatiate unpro- 
ductive birds through October, November, and Decern- 



2IO THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

ber is to become a more rabid detractor of the laying 
hen as a money-maker. If this unhappy eggless state 
continue through January and February and even into 
March, — as is sometimes the case, — so much the worse 
for the reputation of the hen. Yet, even then, if the 
hens fed have been rigidly selected for vigor and 
parentage, they will have reestablished themselves in 
favor by May, and will, even after this date, begin to 
make the income more than meet any reasonable outgo. 
But who is to know the real facts, if there be no ac- 
curate records ? No one can deceive himself more as 
to real facts than the poultryman who relies on guesses 
or on memory rather than on actual figures. And, as 
one writer cleverly puts it : " When we keep accounts, 
we virtually pledge ourselves to make the fowls pay '." 

The little story told by one young man who, six years 
before this is written was a Beginner of Beginners, 
is good proof of the value of records. He started, 
not " at the bottom," but down below the bottom, 
since he borrowed $5 wherewith to buy his first 
pair of fowls. Under these circumstances, the birds 
were in duty bound to pay their own way, and records 
were a necessity. The pair and its descendants have 
paid for several good poultry houses and their ac- 
companying yards ; for advertising, for feed, and for 
part of a new dwelling for their owner; besides fur- 
nishing something of a nest &gg in the bank. The 
owner has them at State Shows in five states, and 
has made winnings under more than twenty different 
judges. He works hard, and studies hard; as most of 
those in any kind of business need to do in these strenu- 
ous times if they would command success. 



XVIII 

PROFIT AND LOSS 

Studying Losses, for Profit — Crowding and Loss — Over- 
crowded Land — " Relatively " — Where will the Begin- 
ner Lose ? — The Mental Attitude — Business Instinct 
and Detail Work — When Experts Disagree — The 
Handler the Chief Cause of Losses — How Hard must 
One Work ? — Raising Chicks " to Perfection " — Faulty 
Figures — Disillusion — Making Income cover Season 

The discussion of " profit and loss " usually shows a 
proneness to dwell on the thought of "profit"; and I 
think this is especially the case when it comes to a ques- 
tion of poultry. I prefer to discuss, rather, the losses. 
I chance to know a gallant young poultryman not yet 
out of high school who has been struggling for some 
years with this painful kind of arithmetic. At intervals, 
his mother attacks me with poignant inquiries as to 
whether poultry ever really does pay. And, though I 
have not the figures, I am given to understand that this 
flock, into which the lad has put keen interest, enthusi- 
asm, time, and money, far beyond the average, does not 
pay. And this, despite the fact that the products are 
largely bought to supply the home table. I gather that 
the income has an ingrained habit of failing to meet ex- 
penses,, even though we ignore all mention of time, 
work, etc., being paid for. 

Not long ago, there appeared in a New England pub- 
lication (probably the most conservative one in the 
United States, dealing especially with the poultry indus- 



PROFIT AND LOSS 213 

try) a query from a subscriber as to profits in poultry 
raising. It was based on a quotation (for which the in- 
quirer vouched as correct) from " an official, in the De- 
partment of Agriculture at Washington, D.C.," affirming 
that said official knew of only one profitable poultry farm in 
the country ! This created something of a stir in eastern 
Massachusetts, where a pretty large percentage of the 
people must be considered as either congenital idiots 
or successful poultry raisers, because it is simply incon- 
ceivable that they would remain in an occupation which 
was in all cases unprofitable, and that through many 
years, even to lifetimes ! 

The conservative editor to whom this query came pro- 
nounced the statement "ridiculous," affirmed that it 
emanated from a man who was not a poultry man, and 
said: "I doubt whether there is a 'farm' anywhere in 
the United States where poultry is given attention 
enough to supply its necessities and the product handled 
as it usually is on farms, where the poultry is not 
profitable." I give this deliverance especially, because 
this particular editor has never been known to put em- 
phasis on the " rosy " side of poultry raising. He be- 
lieves, however, that the poultry on most farms " might 
be made more profitable than it is." This point might 
be very easy to prove by figures. But poultry on most 
farms necessarily has its relation to the other work of 
the farm, and it often becomes a nice question as to 
which is the most profitable to neglect. With some 
workers, it would undoubtedly be the poultry, at times. 

A point made before the discussion noted was closed, 
brings us again to the question of crowding, and nails 
it as a source of loss. The editor favored the combina- 



PROFIT AND LOSS 215 

tion of some trucking and fruit raising with poultry rais- 
ing, not merely for the profit from them in itself, but 
because he regarded them as a means of staving off cer- 
tain definite losses common to poultry raising, through 
utilizing the manure and keeping the land in wholesome 
condition. " It is not impossible," he says, "to make an 
exclusive poultry plant pay, for a period of years ; but 
if the land is overcrowded, the risk of loss is increased, 
and a time may come when the land becomes positively 
unfit for poultry." I call especial attention to the fact 
that his view goes beyond that to which I have previ- 
ously drawn your notice, viz., the crowding as it affects 
individual birds directly, — and talks of overcrowded 
land as a fundamental, wide-reaching source of loss. 

A certain statement of Professor W. J. Spillman, one of 
the government employees, may well come in for a 
brief consideration. He affirms that more money " can 
be lost with chickens, relatively, than with sheep or pigs." 
The mind of any reader instinctively demands, " Why ?" 
This is one of those statements which prove irritating, 
because so indefinite that analysis can do nothing with 
them. What does "relatively" mean, for instance? 
Relatively, one loses a hen much oftener than he loses a 
sheep, possibly, if he raises both. But again, relatively, 
with common stock, he can afford to lose eight to ten 
hens for each sheep lost, and still come out even. If he 
chance to be carrying sheep worth five dollars each and 
hens worth ten or twenty-five dollars each, it would be 
marvelously easy to prove the learned Professor's point. 
As a matter of fact, if a man is ignorant enough, 
careless enough, or stupid enough, he can probably lose 
all he invests either in sheep or in pigs, not to mention 



2l6 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

poultry, and, from this point of view, the quoted state- 
ment would mean little or nothing. 

Should you ask any old hand with poultry just about 
where he would expect a Beginner to lose money, he 
would doubtless answer, "In the things he overlooks, 
thinking they do not affect the main question." I 
suspect that slow and poor development of the chicks 
may be counted the one great common source of loss. 
This, you may notice, is a " loss " of something the 
worker never had. But it is surely one great hindrance 
to profit. It tells in the meat sales and in the egg sales. 
In avoiding the causes that make for poor development, 
the skill of the worker is most severely tested, and his 
timbre most fully shown. 

When it comes to the next great source of loss, the 
matter again depends much on the one just, discussed. 
If there are many poorly developed birds, there will 
almost surely be weak-kneed culling. Many fowls will 
be left to crowd and sponge on the good birds. This 
means relatively large feed bills — big bills and little 
returns ; another loss of something one has never had ! 
The ponltrymaii s profits are in his hopes and aims ful- 
filled; his " losses " are in his hopes blasted. This just 
about covers the situation. 

The mental attitude of the grower is one real key to 
success. A good poultryman is, in nearly every instance, 
a good business man. His habit of mind will not allow 
him to let things go at loose ends. He needs a liking 
for poultry as one of the fundamentals, but that liking 
will not take the full place of systematic business methods, 
the resultant of business instinct. 

I believe it to be an almost universal rule that the man 



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3 



1? 




2l8 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

who would succeed in a business composed almost wholly 
of small detail work, and having many small sources 
of loss and profit, must have better business instinct than 
is necessary to the one who is to Jiandle work with less 
detail. Perhaps this is in direct opposition to the gen- 
eral belief, but I have seen it demonstrated too often 
not to insist on my point. If the learner have the right 
habit of mind, he can master the operations necessary ; 
if not, teaching, and even experience, will not make him 
an expert. 

Mr. M. Hastings, in his "The Dollar Hen," lays 
chief stress on keeping down labor, and keeping down 
expenses. In the number of those engaged in it, he 
states, the " chicken business " is the largest industry in 
the world. A practical man, himself, he says to the 
" Man-Who-Wants-to-Know," with considerable vigor: 
" If your climate will not permit the hen to live outdoors, 
get out of the climate, or get out of the hen business." 
This would cut the (literal) ground from under far 
more than half the poultry raisers of our big country, 
as none of us at the North have the advantage of a 
climate where the hen can live outdoors throughout the 
year. Even though this were sound common sense, it 
would be no solution of the question for the common 
run of inquirers, because the average man wants to 
know how to raise poultry with credit and cash surpluses 
just where he is. To be sure, Mr. Hastings, was refer- 
ring specifically to those who would start commercial 
poultry plants, or those who might wish to make a liv- 
ing from poultry alone ; which fact somewhat restricts 
his words from universal application. 

Whatever we may or may not say about a certain 



PROFIT AND LOSS 219 

well-known system, there is no doubt that its originator 
is a man of keen and practical mind. In the face of the 
stern necessity of the above requirements for location, how 
is it that we find Mr. Hastings so far away from him in 
his beliefs and practices? The system man affirms that 
his broilers reach two pounds at eight weeks, and that 




Actual Variations in Retail Prices in the United States, in Ten Years : From 
Six to Seventy-four Cents 

he has no loss in raising them. He declares, in this 
connection, that there is " a living in poultry keeping 
and a living better than 99 out of 100 who ' seek work ' 
for a living are making. The location is but a small 
factor." One of his maxims is, " To-morrow will never 
do." In support of this maxim, he asserts that all but 
one out of a hundred cases of failure in any line are 
caused either by not giving attention at the proper time, 
or else by giving more attention to something else than 
to the business. He refers to the poultry business as 



2 20 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

" the one " business where brains count more than 
muscle. 

But, here's a point of great difficulty : each " expert " 
who, would persuade the public that he only knows the 
one way in which poultry can be made to pay, differs 
from all others, as a matter of course, with regard to 
the essentials. How shall the lamblike public sort out 
the one public benefactor from the scores of public 
fleecers? It certainly follows that, if there be only one 
right way, all the rest who claim exclusive paths to suc- 
cess are preying upon the public. They must be ! 

Despite Mr. Hastings's final pronunciamento, here 
comes the system " expert," and, not content with say- 
ing that location is but a small factor, he insists that, in 
considering possibilities of success, he can tell better 
when he knows the person than when he knows the 
place only. In this, most workers would agree with 
him. It is wholly clear that he considers the handler 
of the plant the most uncertain factor, and that he be- 
lieves that this handler is likely to be the chief source of 
losses, when these occur. This is a hard saying for the 
average inquirer to assimilate without rancor or unbelief. 

But, I wonder if the average person who goes into 
poultry raising expects — as this man affirms is neces- 
sary — to work as hard as would be necessary if employed 
by another! "The work of raising the chickens to per- 
fection should be the first one to master," says this keen 
business man. Is it likely that the average inquirer 
will do this? How many have you known who could 
raise chickens " to perfection " ? 

A prolific source of disappointment lies in the lack 
of skill in making the income from the fowls cover the 



PROFIT AND LOSS 2 21 

year. It does not seem to matter so much whether a man 
have much capital or little. If he have much, he is liable 
to waste it ; if little, he is rather likely to get tangled 
up in winter when outgoes are beyond incomes. This 
is one of the good reasons why asparagus and fruits, etc., 
may go well with poultry ; as they furnish money com- 
ing in sometimes just when the poultry income slackens. 
Much of the work with tree fruits can be done at a time 
of year when the poultry work is of least volume. This 
point needs to be watched, in selection of combinations. 



XIX 

COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND 
FOWLS 

Productive Capacity — Cornell's Findings — A Business 
Poultryman's Views and Methods — Making Prices — 
Range of Cost in Egg Production — The "Average 
Hen" — Cheap Feeding — Free Range — Feed in Aus- 
tralian Tests — Profit Twice the Cost — 1910 Prices 
-What shall Your Eggs Cost? Your Chicks ?- 
Sprouted Oats — Principles of Big Business Men. 

This question, so important for every Beginner to 
have full information on, is very difficult to be definite 
about. The best we can do is to give an idea of cost 
under different circumstances, and leave the worker to 
apply the facts as stated, to his conditions. Where con- 
ditions vary, truth becomes, for the time, untruth. This 
point the Beginner must have always in mind in com- 
puting probable costs. 

That which is true this year may be partly false next 
year ; since prices of feed and other materials vary ; 
since, also, as it is applied to different localities, that which 
is true in the East may be false in the West. Even the 
productive capacity of a certain fowl may differ accord- 
ing to the climate in which she does her work. More- 
over, the poultryman himself is a factor in the result 
which may make my figures true for one man and false 
for another, even when both carry the same breed and 
live in the same locality. A knowledge of feeding 
values such that it allows the worker to substitute a 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 223 

cheap feed of equal nutrient value for one that may be 
temporarily high through failure of crops or other 
cause, may make a large difference in the cost of pro- 
duction. 

It is generally believed that the cost of producing 
eggs or market stock is nearly twice as high at the 
present time as it was ten years ago. Yet, yesterday, I 
received a letter from an enthusiastic Indian Runner 
breeder in the South, telling how cheaply he could raise 
the Runner Ducks, and how much money could be 
made from them in his locality, from the market point 
of view only, because they would live so largely on 
alfalfa and oats "with a little meat thrown in." He 
continued, " They do eat more than a chicken, but even 
if they ate twice as much of the same kind of feed, 
they would still be just as profitable, for they will grow 
more than twice as fast as a chicken during the first 
ten weeks." 

In the year 1902, the Cornell Station put out a bul- 
letin giving the detailed results of a cooperative test of 
the cost of egg production in New York State at that 
time. In this work, a dozen flocks in various parts of 
the state were used, running in numbers from 25 to 600 
hens in a flock. By this, I mean those which belonged 
to one owner. Although these were all within the 
borders of one state, the cost of feeding, per hundred, 
varied from $28.62 to above $39 for the seventeen 
weeks from the beginning of December to the end of 
March. The average production of the 2100 fowls 
represented was a trifle more than 23 per 100 daily, and 
the average food cost of a dozen eggs was sixteen and 
one fourth cents. The average profit above cost of 



224 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

feed was nearly $24 per 100 hens, for the entire period. 
It will be seen that this, if it were duplicated in the re- 
maining months of a complete year, would not reach the 
$1 per bird which was so long the standard of profit. 
The poorest flock made less than $2 profit per 100 
above cost of feed, while the best flock (numbering 
150) gave $62 profit over feed per 100 birds, for the 
seventeen weeks. Possibly the point which may cut 
closest to the quick of the Beginner is this : No two 
flocks produced eggs at the same cost per dozen, the 
best costing a trifle over eight and one half cents a 
dozen, while the eggs of the poorest handler cost nearly 
34 cents per dozen. Others cost 13, 16, 19 cents, etc. 
It is quite possible that some of these owners had better 
opportunities for buying supplies. But it is abundantly 
evident that some were far better business men than 
the others ; possibly more skilled feeders as well. 

A skillful dealer in poultry products, writing in the 
most modern and businesslike poultry publication 
available at this time, gives his own idea of the attitude 
of some novices thus : " The second class constitute 
those who expect to brood chicks for little or nothing. 
These are the rankest novices in the business and are 
the especial marks of the ' get-rich-quick ' boomers. 
This kind of person expects so much for so little, that 
he is hardly worth sympathy, let alone attention and 
advice. Most of them end with ' fireless brooders ' be- 
cause they are cheap." Another, very different class, 
noted by this man consists of fanciers who do not care 
about expense, if they get efficiency. Rightly, he 
thinks, we should insist on these essentials in any brood- 
ing outfit : Efficiency, economy, saving of work, lasting 



226 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



quality of equipment, and what he calls "elasticity." 
Some brooders, he rates as not convenient ; some makes 
are too perishable ; some poorly ventilated ; in some, 
the labor was found so great as to be prohibitive when 
large numbers were brooded. Being forced by the 




Cheap Cheese Box Home Made "Fireless" Brooder 



necessities of a chain system of egg-producing farms 
under one management, to find something efficient, 
economical, and necessitating little work, he tried the 
fireless type of brooders, under the best advertised 
methods. His conclusion was, in effect, that the death 
rate was too great, the economy imaginary, the plan 
impracticable where time is an element of value and 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 227 

labor expensive. He, in common with most other 
trained business men, believed his best profits must 
come from lessened cost of production. Ultimately, he 
worked into a plan of using the low, square laying 
houses as brooding houses, with an aisle down the center 
and three pens on a side. Toward autumn, the divi- 
sions were removed, instead of moving the pullets. 
Thus, there was no check to laying. This he names " a 
real factor in successful brooding." This plan is, he as- 
severates, an outgrowth " to meet the practical condi- 
tions of a money-making plant." He points out its 
economy, its adaptability to a man's ideas of saving 
work and expense, its avoidance of the exposure of work 
with outdoor brooders, its gain in space, its increased 
yarding possibilities, its all-the-year use of the buildings. 
It will be noted that all these points are in the line of 
both efficiency and economy. 

Passing to talk of eggs, this man says : " Our eggs 
are in a class by themselves, and we do not seek to follow 
market quotations." Prices were fixed at 40 cents and 
60 cents a dozen, according to season, and, on this basis, 
in the second year, a clear profit of $4.17 per layer was 
reported. I have not the figures of the cost of produc- 
tion ; all costs have been subtracted from the income — 
not merely that of feed. 

Some producers have reported the cost of production 
of their eggs at less than three cents a dozen. An ex- 
perienced editor replied to a query as to " cost of eggs 
for the average farmer " that it ought to be about six cents 
a dozen. It has been stated that 98 per cent of the poul- 
try business of the country is conducted on the farms ; 
but to "average" five million farms, and farmers, more 



228 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



or less, is a difficult matter. Here is the state of Mis- 
sissippi, for instance, to which the census of 1900 gave an 
average production of 43 eggs per hen. The farm price 
of eggs in this state averaged not cp_iite 10 cents a 
dozen. The hen brought in about 35 cents a year. If, 
then, it cost nothing at all to feed her, she gave a 




One Month's Product : Left, the Forty-eight-egg 
dred-fifty-egg Hen 



Hen ; Right, the Two-hun- 



''profit " of about one third what the " average " hen has 
for almost a generation, I think, been supposed to produce 
for her owner. The South Carolina " average " hen, ac- 
cording to the same figures, did a little less well, pro- 
ducing, as per report, two eggs less a year than the 
Mississippi birds. In seven states, the average was be- 
low 45 eggs per hen for the full year. Maine hens just 
touched 100, and two or three others nearly reached 
this figure. But, when we average these with the hens 
below 45, how it pulls the figure down ! It seems to me 
that the most noticeable point in the report is the fact 
that Maine and New Hampshire lead the United States, 
and they are among the very worst as to atmospheric 
conditions. Massachusetts is next in production ; all 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 229 

the states with nice, warm weather are very loiv in aver- 
ages. The states with medium weather have medium 
averages. This exactly reverses what we might expect. 
The only reason I can see is that the South is careless 
and does not take care of its hens, the mid-states are too 
absorbed in general farming to takethe best care, and only 
those who have to take good care to get returns at all 
are showing fair average returns. Better markets at the 
North may be an added stimulus. 

What about the hen kept in confinement ? What will 
be the cost per dozen of the eggs which she produces ? 
That depends on the prices of feed, the quality of the 
hen, and the quality of her handler; all uncertain points, 
and difficult to "average." A hen in confinement, with 
only supplied food, will eat, of hard grain, about one 
and one third bushels, or 80 pounds. If this were wheat, 
at two and one fourth cents a pound, her feed for the 
year would cost $1.80, and if she laid 100 eggs at three 
cents each, she would have $1.20 left to pay for the 
meat and green stuff, and give the dollar of profit which 
has been the safe standard for twenty years, perhaps. 

But suppose, on the contrary, that one should take 
one and one third bushels of oats, costing, possibly, fifty- 
three cents if bought from the raiser and should "pro- 
cess " it, making it into four bushels. This would bring 
the cost down to thirteen cents a bushel. The fowl's 
health would be so much better if this were made a liberal 
portion of her daily ration, that she would be likely to 
lay more eggs, and would distance the bird fed on 
wheat alone several times over in the matter of profit. 

Suppose, again, that one can get plenty of alfalfa, cut 
short and fine, — not when it has been through the 



230 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

hands of the middlemen and sells at the rate of fifty dol- 
lars, more or less, for a ton, but from the producer. It 
is a most excellent laying and growing feed, for the 
foundation. Two parts of this, one each of bran and 
fine middlings, and one fourth as much linseed meal 
would make an excellent dry mash. With ground meat 
in another hopper, and a full hopper of this mill stuff 
always before them, the birds would need only enough 
corn and oats to keep them exercising. This feed ought 
not to cost more than half as much as all wheat, while 
it would probably give fully as good results in eggs, and 
better results in the condition of yarded birds. 

One of the better-class poultry periodicals worked up, 
during 191 1, a symposium on the value, in practical 
terms, of the Wyandottes, the birds representing most 
nearly the American ideal of a satisfactory all-around 
fowl. Breeders of Buff, Columbian, Silver, and Black 
Wyandottes took part in this discussion. A tabulation 
of these opinions, the result of actual experience, shows 
the breed up as follows : — 

Fair average egg' yield, first year of laying : 

Highest, 200 eggs 

Lowest, 140 eggs 

Average of all, 1 66 eggs 

Cost to hatch and grow to laying age : 

Lowest (free range), $ .35 

Highest, $ .80 

Average of all, $ .69 

Cost of keeping mature bird one year : 

Highest, $2.00 

Lowest, $ .90 

Average of all, $ 1.26 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 231 

As to feeds, most of the growers began with chick feed. 

One grower declared his faith that the free-range chick 
is both cheaper to grow and better when grown, and said 
that free range, joined to a provision of beef scrap and 
cracked corn, was the very best of chick combinations. 
The grower whose estimate of cost was lowest started 
his chicks on free range and rolled oats for about a 
month, then used cracked corn and a mash comprising 
equal parts of bran and oats with half as much beef 
scrap and twice as much corn meal. When near matur- 
ity, whole corn took the place of cracked corn. Dr. N. 
W. Sanborn, who chanced to be the one whose estimate 
was the highest, of fhose that gave exact figures, declared 
for good commercial chick feed during the first six 
weeks ; after this, dry hopper-fed mash, corn and oats, 
middlings and scrap ; mixed grain, corn, oats, wheat, and 
barley. Apparently, the difference in cost is made 
chiefly by conditions of handling (and perhaps contin- 
uance of chick feeds) rather than by variation in actual 
grains fed. I have given the cheapest and the most ex- 
pensive in order to show this. There are two or three 
advantages in a good prepared chick feed : it is fine, it 
is widely varied in composition, containing many differ- 
ent kinds of seed ; it has the right proportion of meat. 
A poor chick feed has too much grit at a high price 
and too much millet. (Neither is used as much as at 
one time. The public simply refused to be baited by 
this class of goods.) One feeder, who stated that he 
never had sickness or leg weakness among his chicks, 
used a dry mash consisting of bran, meat scrap, clover, 
corn meal, and dry bread, " all they can eat," wheat 
and cracked corn for grain, corn largely predominating. 



232 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Only two of these growers, much to my surprise, 
mention the use of sprouted oats. Only one mentions 
clover. I judge this to mean that most of them consider 
free range a necessity, and that they do not need to 
supply the bulky feeds. If chicks are to be grown in 
confinement, the one salvation for the grower is to keep 
them at work, which can be best done by burying grain 
in the soil regularly, and putting it in so deep that it will 
sprout. I once listened to the story of a woman who 
raised wonderful chickens on a city lot. She said she 
could not have done it had she not had chick ladders, 
which they were compelled to use, in various parts of 
the houses and runs. It seems to me that it is decidedly 
better for the chicks to work for something rather than 
for the sake of work alone. 

One point in the Australian Competitions which makes 
them so valuable to the world at large lies in the fact 
that they are consistent efforts to do things in a way 
that can be followed by any worker with poultry. Only 
in the use of flocks smaller than are usually thought 
profitable do they depart from the path of the common 
man. The housing is of the simplest, the feed cheap 
and everywhere obtainable, the hens actually " bor- 
rowed " from the workers of the land for testing in 
competition. Professor Thompson, the conductor of 
the tests, says : " the whole of the tests have been 
carried out on- plain, practical lines within reach of the 
ordinary farmer." The mash, mixed in winter with boil- 
ing water and in summer with cold water, is composed 
of one fourth bran and three fourths "pollard" (which 
Mr. Purvis says means middlings in "American"). 
Twic'e a week, a pound of boiled liver to ten hens is 



234 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

minced, and with the hot " soup " goes to form the 
mash for those days, when the ground grain is added. 
The birds are fed a little more than they will eat up 
clean. Liberal feeding is one of the lessons of the 
test; also, according to Professor Thompson: "The 
natural grasses in a run form the greater proportion 
of the feed consumed by fowls. Consequently, the 
provision of good, grass runs is Jialf the battle in poul- 
try farming." Can we assimilate that thought ? 

The cost of production of these eggs is the interesting 
point. The 181 eggs per hen were produced at a cost, 
of the supplied feed, of $i each, which is almost exactly 
6§ cents a dozen. The profit above feed was more thaji 
twice the cost. Part of this is offset by the greater ex- 
pense of housing in pens of six. But, supposing that 
one housed in lots of 25 and received an average of but 
100 eggs, which is the best that any state in the Union 
reports. The gain over cost of feed would then be 
about 44 cents per hen. This looks like penny wise, 
pound foolish in exaggerated measure : $1.75 in profit 
lost — if such an anomaly can be ! — per hen would off- 
set the greater cost of housing in small numbers, many 
times over. But, if it came to a question of labor, the 
matter would again take on another look ; since labor 
is the great expense, as soon as it has to be hired. 
Hens carried in lots of six mean labor greatly increased, 
as any one must see. 

The Government Report for the year 1910, for this en- 
tire country, covers the average price received by farmers 
on the 1st of the alternate months of 1909, beginning 
with February, and the 1st of each month during 1910, 
for each state and territory. These are also grouped 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 



235 



into Divisions, as North Atlantic, South Central, etc. 
From this tabulated list, I select the figures for May, the 
month of lowest prices ; December, the month of highest 
prices ; and August, an intermediate. February runs, in 
general, about ten cents a dozen higher than August. 



May 



August 



Decembeb 



Maine 

New Hampshire 

Vermont 

Massachusetts 

Rhode Island 

Connecticut 

New York 

New Jersey 

Pennsylvania 

N. Atlantic Division (av.) 

Delaware 

Maryland 

Virginia 

West Virginia ...... 

North Carolina 

South Carolina 

Georgia . . 

Florida 

S. Atlantic Division (av.) 

Ohio 

Indiana 

Illinois . 

Michigan 

Wisconsin 

N. Central (E. of Miss. R.) (av.) 

Minnesota 

Iowa 



Cts. 
21 

23 
21 

25 
22 

23 

21 

24 

20 

21.4 

21 

19 

18 

18 

17 

19 

20 

22 

18.6 

19 

19 

19 

19 

18 

18.9 

18 

18 



Cts. 
25 
27 
24 

33 
32 
30 

2 5 
28 

23 

25.4 

22 

l 9 

18 
20 
16 
17 

19 

22 
18.5 

J 9 
16 
16 
l 9 
17 
17.4 

IS 

14 



Cts. 
40 

39 
37 
5° 
50 
45 
39 
40 

34 

38-4 

33 

32 

28 

29 

24 

27 

29 

3i 

28.3 

3i 

29 

28 

28 

27 

28.9 

27 

25 



236 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Missouri 

North Dakota 

South Dakota ...... 

Nebraska 

Kansas 

N. Central (W. of Miss. R.)(av.) 

Kentucky 

Tennessee 

Alabama 

Mississippi •. 

Louisiana . 

Texas 

Oklahoma 

Arkansas 

S. Central Division (av.) . 

Montana 

Wyoming 

Colorado 

New Mexico 

Arizona 

Utah 

Nevada 

Idaho 

Washington ....... 

Oregon 

California 

Far Western (av.) .... 

United States (av.) .... 



May 



Cts. 

'7 

16 

17 
17 
17 

17 4 
18 

17 

16 

16 

18 

16 

16 

16 

16.6 

25 

24 

21 

21 

3° 
20 

32 

23 

24 

23 



August 



22 . ^ 

18.6 



Cts. 
12 

17 
15 
13 
12 

13-9 

14 

14 

IS 

16 
17 
14 
14 
16 

147 

30 
28 

24 

23 

33 
23 
33 
26 
28 

27 
26 
26.3 
17.6 



December 



Cts. 

25 

27 

25 

25 

25 

25-3 

25 

26 

25 
23 

25 
25 
25 
24 
24.9 

40 
36 
•34 
33 
4i 
33 
45 
39 
42 
39 
44 
40.6 

29 



The manager of one of our systems of branch farms, 
linked to a hatching and selling center, states that one 
of the reasons for the success of this system is that they 
reverse the usual process, so that by virtue of their 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 237 

united strength and their organized plan of selling, they 
buy at wholesale and sell at retail. 

Suppose, now, that it is true, as some say, that "pro- 
cessed oats " cost only ten cents a bushel. Estimate 
that three bushels of it will go as far as one bushel of 
oats not processed. Add 25 cents a year for beef scrap, 
and, if liberally minded, 10 cents more for grit, shell, and 
charcoal, all of which are cheap when bought by the 
hundred. To this you may add just what you please 
in the way of expense for more variety. (Mr. Briggs, 
of processed oats fame, says that he has kept hens for 
six months at a time on nothing but beef scrap and 
processed oats for feed, with most excellent results ; 
though he does not recommend this as being the best 
way.) What total do you get for a year's feed per hen ? 

What I am trying to get at is, how much are you, 
friend Beginner, going to let your eggs cost you ? Shall 
it be eighteen cents a dozen ? Shall it be fifteen ? Four- 
teen cents ? Twelve ? Eight ? Can you get it lower 
still ? What is your caliber ? What your aim ? It is 
your problem. The Utah Station has produced eggs 
for 52 cents per hen, cost of feed for a full year. For 
how much less, I do not know. But, at 52 cents, with 
a yield of 150, the feed cost of the eggs would be about 
four and one third cents a dozen. Some of the hens laid 
more. I do not remember the average, if it was given, 
and my figure of 150 is arbitrary. We need to remember 
that not all, by any means, can make their hens reach 
this average. 

We have allowed above, on sprouted oats and beef 
scrap, with the digesters, a total of about 75 cents per 
hen. Remembering that the sponsor of this system 



238 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

says that it is easy to get 200-egg-average layers on this 
feed, look at this presumptive cost. It comes out in a 
fraction, and you don't like fractions of a cent any 
better than I do ; we will say, then, that it is certainly 
less than five cents a dozen — this estimated cost of 
producing eggs. Now, when you figure out on paper 
the cost or the profits of your poultry, are you going 
to figure on a basis of five cents, or of eighteen cents a 
dozen ? And, if you figure on five cents a dozen, are 
you going to make good ? There are those who testify 
that it can be done ; they know it, they say, because 
they do it. But, let me warn you that the average pro- 
ducer's cost for eggs — setting aside those raised on the 
farm, which it has been difficult to get any kind of 
figures on — comes nearer eighteen than three! Is it not 
pertinent to ask, " Why ? " Is it not more than perti- 
nent for you to consider gravely which lot of poultry 
raisers you will foregather with ? 

The Department of Cooperation of the Ohio Experi- 
ment Station is reported early in 19 12 as having sent out 
a Bulletin on this very matter, a " preliminary," but cov- 
ering test work for two years or more, among farmers 
and others. These men returned reports, but received 
no advice as to how to handle their flocks. Time occu- 
pied in handling was computed with care, and figured on 
the basis of the value of a man's time. Thirty-six coun- 
ties were represented, ten pure breeds and four mixed 
flocks. Eighteen were farm flocks, averaging 121 hens 
and 83 eggs per bird. The feed cost of these farm flocks 
averaged 59 cents, or nearly eight and one half cents per 
dozen ; but the lowest report was 5 cents and the highest 
about 1 1 cents per dozen. The labor cost was three cents 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 239 

per hen per year, on the farms. The average income from 
the farm hens was $1.80. The average profit was $1.18. 
The general average of the town flocks was 89 eggs, 
but one flock gave an average of 145. The feed cost 
ranged from 63 cents to $2.43 per hen. Four of the 
thirteen town flocks showed deficits, ranging from 36 
cents to 93 cents. 




Farm Hopper Feeding and Watering Devices. Keeping the Cost Down 

Now, the cost of producing chicks. This depends, 
first, on the value of the eggs which you put to incuba- 
tion, and the number which you must reckon for produc- 
ing each mature layer. In foreign countries, at the cen- 
tral hatcheries, it is said that the operators will take a 
customer's eggs, hatch them, and return him three chicks 
for each four eggs, depending for their profit on the 
number of chicks above a 75 per cent hatch which their 
methods return them. In this country, it has been said 
by those who are considered reliable and well posted 
that it takes four eggs, on the average, to produce one 
chick. That is, the initial average cost of a chick, in 



240 THE BEGINNER IN POUETRY 

this country, assuming that eggs are of the same price, is 
over three times as high as it is in, say, China or Egypt. 
Mr. Hastings thinks we shall cut down that cost when 
we reach the stage of many central mammoth hatcheries 
for general hatching. In the meantime, how is the 
Beginner, — how are you to reduce this initial cost ? If 
you are in the East, and eggs average toward 40 cents 
a dozen the year around, can you afford this inexcusable 
high initial cost? This figures up 13 cents per chick, 
just for the eggs to hatch it, before we have allowed for 
any loss in brooding, for accidents, etc. Here is a mar- 
gin of about nine cents per chick which ought, in some 
way, to be turned from the expense into the profit col- 
umn. I challenge you squarely : are you the man to do 
it ? Or, are you a woman, and will assist at such a 
slaughter of the innocents ? 

Now, here comes Mr. Briggs, who claims to be one of 
the five of the successful whom he counts in each hun- 
dred business poultry raisers, and says that sprouted oats 
has placed him in this enviable position of being one of 
the five, and that it will place any one within that 
charmed group. 

A few days before this writing, I saw some figures 
from a man who claimed to have much experience with 
poultry raising on the large commercial scale. He said: 
"We are satisfied with a death rate of 15 to 20 per cent, 
when thousands are raised under artificial methods, and 
our largest plants do not get under that." This problem, 
of how to lower the loss margin, comes to the fore again 
and again, no matter what the branch of work. We 
have too much common sense to believe that we can 
handle living things with as close a margin as may do 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 241 

for mechanical problems ; but, let us get it deep into our 
consciousness that reduced loss margins are clear gain. 
I think the most practical way to study this question of 
necessary cost of production is to fix the mind continually 
on the two extremes ; to find out, from every available 
source, the costs of production as they really are ; not 
to rest till we find out why they are so, and then to aim 
directly at the lower figures, as our own goal. 

Referring once more to the thought that it is the best 
business men who are the most successful with poultry, 
let us consider the signs of this which appear in the 
periodical literature of present-day poultry. Do not let 
us think that this is not germane because the writers are 
fanciers, while the great majority of poultry raisers, and 
therefore, doubtless, of Beginners, are not. It is the 
principle underlying their method which I want to 
ferret out, stating it so that it can be used by any 
poultry raiser. 

There are two names, among the newer poultry ad- 
vertisers of the day, which stand out above all others. 
They take large space in all the better poultry periodicals, 
to be sure ; but this, of itself, does not explain their suc- 
cess. Men and firms longer in the business, fearing 
their competition, have done the same thing ; yet the 
new men have distanced them. One of them keeps be- 
fore the public the thought of his fair and systematic 
business methods. The other spends his strength in 
making startling statements, or making his advertise- 
ments interesting. Both make considerable of the fact 
that they look out for customers' interests. One says, 
" We are selling on honor and giving results that more 
than satisfy our customers." The other says : " I made 



242 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

so many thousands of dollars net profit in one year. 
My farm and books are open to inspection to any State 
Poultry Experimental Station. If your Station doesn't 
find the above statements true, I'll donate $1000 in cash 
to your Institute." This last bids for notice by offering 
to tell how he made $3600 in one season from 30 hens 
" by feeding the scraps from my table three times a day." 
Wouldn't you look up a man like that, whether you be- 
lieved his claim or not ? That is the way human nature 
works. If he promised to tell you how he bred his big 
egg-laying strain, how he raised ninety-eight chicks out 
of a hundred, etc., and offered scores of testimonials 
from customers supporting what he said, wouldn't you 
be interested in spite of yourself ? If he worked with 
might and main to make the breed popular and much 
talked of, as well as for his own business, wouldn't you 
want to get the benefits of the big crumbs that fall from 
his advertising table ? He does all these tJiings. Atone 
time, he took large advertising space just telling how 
many advertisers of his breed appeared in recent issues, 
and the proportion that were of .his own strain. Don't 
you see how this helps every man along the line, from 
the biggest advertiser to the latest timorous would-be? 

Suppose that he wrote letters to the editors of in- 
fluential papers, telling always how good business was, 
how big prices he was getting, how people begged for 
eggs from his strain, and how his customers, too, were 
getting a full share of his " boom." Would you not feel 
that Fate had been kind in turning you toward him and 
his stock? Wouldn't you, too,- write him an enthusiastic 
letter, which would turn up later as a testimonial for him 
and an advertisement for you, and not cost you more 



COST OF PRODUCING EGGS, CHICKS, AND FOWLS 243 

than the postage and paper ? Human nature works 
that way, let me repeat ! 

Now, the heart of this can be applied to work with 
utility poultry, in degree. First, the good business sense 
which selects a good breed, and which raises the very 
best kind of stock that can be raised, from the best 
strain for the purpose. Then, the sizing up of human 
nature, studying what will appeal to it, furnishing just 
that product. Then, making much of telling your public 
that you have exactly what they want, of the best kind 
and quality. 

Fancy stock has its seasons. Its raisers like to work 
off all they can in the fall, to avoid housing and feeding 
expense. The winter months, in such case, will be 
largely barren of trade. Does the big advertiser there- 
fore withdraw his advertisement ? Not at all : he talks 
all the year ; he pours out facts, arguments, what-not. 
If he has nothing else to say, he will use his space in 
telling the world that he is all sold out, but that another 
season he will do more and better. 

Beside this, put the attitude of the hesitating egg raiser 
who Just once puts a timid advertisement into his local 
weekly, telling people he has such and such goods, and, 
because the town doesn't fall over itself to hunt him up, 
henceforth tells all his personal friends that advertising 
is but throwing money away ! This is the way human 
nature works, too. A man must have trained business 
instincts before he can put money in a hopper and see 
it run away from him, in firm faith that it will eventually 
come traipsing back, bringing much more with it. How 
else could a firm pay $4000 a page to advertise five-cent 
chewing gum ? Men do these things and make fortunes. 



XX 

STUDYING EGGS 

Market Gradings — The Most Offensive Variation in Eggs 

— Cornell Demonstration Grading — The Low Grades 

— Abnormal Eggs — Inflammations — Breeds classed 
as to Color of Eggs — Shell Textures and Variations — 
The Ideal Egg — Grading by Selection of Hatching 
Eggs — Grading and Extra Price. 

The Cornell Station, among its exhibits at Fairs and 
Poultry Shows, carries a grading table fitted with pockets 
running lengthwise of its surface, of such shape that 
they hold the eggs securely, when the table is almost on 
edge. This brings the student of eggs face to face with 
the contents of every egg in a crateful. The eggs are 
bought in the open market and when graded show clearly 
the various shapes, colors, and sizes which pertain to 
the market eggs as commonly offered by the farm 
producer. 

Eggs may be placed roughly in three or four grades, 
it may be ; or, as in New York markets, there may be 
twice as many grades, or even more. Producers in gen- 
eral are quite free in their expression of the sense of in- 
justice which they feel is done them, by the fact that 
the middlemen, somewhere along the line, advance the 
price so much, that out of the dollar which the consumer 
may pay the producer gets, it may be only forty cents, 
more or less. We must all allow that if the middleman 
takes the product off our hands, pays transportation, 
commissions, candling, etc., and stands possible (and 

244 



STUDYING EGGS 245 

very probable) losses, he must be reimbursed for these, 
and must also have a fair margin of profit. This he 
takes as long as he stays in business, and the day that 
he is compelled to go out of business is usually a poor 
day for the average producer. But in the matter of 
eggs, probably the largest item of difference between 
what he pays the producer and what he receives comes 
from his doing that which the producer either will not 
bother with, or else which he finds impracticable, be- 
cause his product is small in volume. There is a way in 
which he might do his grading, simply, easily, effectively, 
which I will speak of later. Since he does not as yet 
ordinarily follow this method, we will look at the eggs 
as they actually do vary when offered to the market of 
to-day. 

Market eggs do vary much in shape, in size, in color, 
in texture, and surface of shell. The critical eye detects 
most quickly, in my opinion, a variation in size. This is 
a very offensive variation to the buyer critic. A lot of 
eggs would much better be all of fair to good size, than 
to contain a few overlarge specimens, which will make 
all the rest look unduly small. Next in importance to 
variations in size may be placed variations in shape. I 
place these before variations in color (knowing that 
some will differ with me), because some shapes are so 
very far from normal as to be notably in themselves un- 
attractive (and useless), while an egg may be almost any 
tint in the wide range from chalk-white to " seal brown " 
without being unattractive, except to the prejudiced 
buyer. Markets and poultry writers do sometimes suc- 
ceed in prejudicing buyers against certain colors, but 
ordinarily the markets have to take all the eggs offered 



246 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

during the entire year. This insures that color in itself 
does not count much, except in the more critical markets. 
It is the pell-mell, " common mixed" look given by the 
contrast between eggs of a dozen shades all in one con- 
tainer, which makes the real " color line." 

On the Cornell grading table we would find one row 
of eggs of snowy whiteness and of perfect shape and 
size. The second might contain eggs equally white, but 
of varied shapes ; the third eggs strictly white, but not 
of good size. Here are three grades in white eggs. 

Under brown eggs we would find browns of large size, 
perfect shape, and most attractive color ; those of smaller 
size, but perfect color and shape ; also those of ab- 
normal shape. In addition to this, the variation in 
shade among brown eggs allows for many grades 
for color ; more or less, according to the critical spirit 
of the market or the grader. " Candling " is a matter 
of exceeding importance to the middleman, especially 
during the warm season, inasmuch as it announces 
the internal condition of the egg to the handler. It is per- 
formed by holding the egg between a strong electric 
light and the eye, and rotating it. Expert candlers work 
with extreme rapidity and come to have an almost un- 
canny power of determining qualities. The producer 
can candle eggs by the use of an egg tester, or it can be 
done in any dark closet where bright sunshine passes 
through a knot hole. The only requirement is that strong 
light shall pass through the egg, while no other light 
touches it. Clever workers become so skillful that they 
can test eggs by dropping them into the V between 
thumb and forefinger and placing the other hand 
above the egg. This, however, would scarcely detect 



STUDYING EGGS 247 

slight changes in the contents. There is a grading of 
defective eggs into "checks," "dirties," and "rots and 
spots." " Checks " may be perfectly good, except for a 
crack in the shell. Bakers might be glad to get them 
for immediate use at a reduced price. " Dirties " may 
also be good if the soiling comes from a grass or hay stain, 
or even from excrement, if it has not lain long on the 
egg. " Rots and spots " should never be used for food, 
although the inspectors have been obliged to destroy 
many thousands of dozens of such eggs wJiich had been 
sold to manufacturers of table delicacies ! 

Beyond the study of eggs in relation to grading, there 
is a study of them which is of immediate and great use 
to the beginner. If this study can be made before he 
begins his work with poultry at all, he will have skipped 




Left, Two-Ounce Hens' Eggs ; Right, One and One-half-Ounce Pullets' Eggs. 
Unsalable in General Market 

several steps in the upward path. Most patent and try- 
ing in a large basket of eggs, just as they come from the 
ordinary farm hennery, are the wide abnormalities in 
shape and size. These, while they may differ widely 
from the best or " standard " shape, are always compara- 
tively few in number, and on a careful small plant are 



248 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

generally reserved for household use in the home family. 
There is always a cause for these extreme abnormalities 
in shape and size. This cause may be so obscure that 
one may not point to it definitely, but it is almost sure to 
be some abnormal condition of the organs of reproduc- 
tion in the female. It may be only an irritated state, or 
it may be more serious inflammation or other trouble 
with the egg tract. But the abnormally shaped egg is 
proof of a condition which needs attention. The egg 
tract lies packed closely within the abdomen of the 
female fowl ; it has many folds and turnings, through 
all of which the egg must pass on its way to exclusion, 
and during which passage it must increase constantly in 
size, and must receive several layers of white (albumen) 
and a tough membranous skin and shell. These are 
attained in regular order, and the process is one requir- 
ing time. It may be two weeks, more or less, between 
the detachment of one shining, pinkish yellow bead or 
pellet from the embryo egg cluster and its appearance 
in the basket of the egg gatherer some fortunate night. 
The soft tract, full of blood vessels, through which it 
must pass on its journey toward daylight, is many inches 
long, and is somewhat closely surrounded by the intes- 
tinal tract and other internal organs. There must be 
some spare room for the developing eggs, and the 
heavier the laying, the more crowded must be the ab- 
dominal space. Males are often clumsy or rough in 
their service, and may injure the laying fowl with her 
burden of eggs. Again there may be inflammation of 
liver or other organ, and this seems to communicate 
itself to the cluster of egglets awaiting their turn for 
development. At times the tiny yolks are found virtu- 



STUDYING EGGS 249 

ally cooked by the heat of the adjacent inflammations. 
These yolks, abnormal in condition, must set up and 
continue irritation. Strangely enough, a fowl may 
continue to produce eggs through months after some 
wrong condition has been induced. Even too much 
surplus fat may crowd the eggs, and possibly be re- 
sponsible for eggs misshapen. When they come to 
exclusion, abnormal eggs may be twice as large as the 
average, and increased in proportional length. They 
may be as small as pigeons' eggs, or they may be 
flattened into grotesque shapes, or be produced with a 
shell not closed at one end, and having a small sac of 
skin, containing albumen, as an added annex. They 
may be produced with very poor, porous, soft, thin, 
or brittle shells, or they may be rushed into the world 
lacking the shell, which is usually the last addition to 
the perfect egg. All such are a source of loss to the 
large market producer. 

Often, such products may mean only that the hen is 
too fat. They may mean that the food is too stimulat- 
ing ; in other words, that the owner is too greedy for a 
big product, and is feeding, it may be, too much meat 
with this end in view ; or, possibly, some " egg food " or 
" egg tonic " which produces trouble with the egg or- 
gans. The " double-yolked " egg, which is simply two 
eggs within one shell, is pretty sure proof of a too hur- 
ried process, in which the second egg perhaps follows 
the first too closely for all the steps of the process to be 
taken in their regular order. 

But a close study of even those eggs which we would 
ordinarily class as " normal," because they do not differ 
radically from the type, will show us that much needs to 



250 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

be done to make them approach that evenness of grade 
which is the market ideal. I have spoken in a rather 
incidental way of the variation in color. All who buy 
or use eggs know this. The breed classes may be 
grouped as to color of eggs, though there are many 
tones to the brown. The Asiatics are brown tgg breeds, 
and the Americans, having some Asiatic blood, have in- 
herited the color in the tgg. The Hamburgs, Polish, 
Houdans, and Mediterranean breeds lay white eggs. 
Generally, the small or more active birds with white ear 
lobes comprise the white egg breeds. 

Besides variation in size, color, and shape, eggs are 
found to vary in thickness and surface of the shell, and 
in its actual texture. By this last I mean that some 
shells are hard and firm, and fine grained, others being 
too porous and often brittle. Sometimes, a bird, seem- 
ingly having taken a surplus of lime, deposits some of 
it on the surface as roughness, often raised into warts. 
All such variations lessen the attractiveness of the egg, 
and porosity of shell is very likely to point toward some 
lack in feeding or other unfavorable condition, which 
will make the eggs uncertain in hatchability. 

There is one variation in the outward appearance of 
eggs, which, while it detracts from their handsome ap- 
pearance, is not of sufficient importance to cause as 
much apprehension as it often does. This is a rough- 
ish or thickened band or ridge around the " waist " of 
the egg. It is perhaps caused by an overlapping of 
shell at this point when it is deposited, and gives the 
shell the appearance of being pieced together. Some 
throw out all such eggs when selecting for incubation, 
on the assumption that such eggs will not hatch well. 



STUDYING EGGS 25 1 

I have never yet been able to prove that these hatched 
less well than the more normal shells. Some hens have 
a habit of laying such eggs, and some breeds, or 
strains even, produce so many that it seems to have be- 
come almost a fixed habit with them. One year, I 
bought several sittings of eggs for hatching at five dol- 
lars per sitting, of which nearly every egg in the lot 
showed this characteristic, though otherwise hard and 
glossy. The smooth, good-sized, glossy egg is the ideal 
— two ounces being considered the minimum below 
which eggs should not fall in weight. As to the shape, 
we have coined a word "ovoid," which makes the egg 
shape a distinctive term used to enlighten students in 
other lines of work. To define " ovoid " itself, other 
than to say it means egg shaped, is not so easy — Web- 
ster's Dictionary does not even attempt it, probably be- 
cause it is supposed that all know what "egg shaped " 
is. Yet the variations in shape of eggs are endless, be- 
tween the bounds of the near circle and the long ellipse. 
The real " ovoid " shape is large at one end, and gradu- 
ally narrowing to the other end, which is, in a good 
specimen, about one half as thick as the broader end. 

Although an egg with some natural gloss is the most 
beautiful egg known, there is an appearance which must 
also be described as glossy, which does not belong to a 
fresh egg. This is when the egg has been incubated, 
under a hen, for some time ; but this is a different gloss. 
The egg feels unnaturally smooth, and has not the fresh 
bloom of a glossy new-laid egg. 

There are very many hens which never lay glossy 
eggs. This, too, I think, becomes in many instances a 
matter of strain — certain strains of Brown Leghorns, 



252 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

of Wyandottes, and, I think, some White Leghorns lay, 
chiefly, eggs that are lacking in natural gloss. 

Now let us go back for a minute to the thought with 
which this chapter started, the grading of eggs. Un- 
questionably, it means a great deal of work to grade lots 
of " common mixed " eggs. But, if this seems scarcely 
practicable to the small gatherer, we may look at an- 
other method which is thoroughly practicable. It must 
be remembered that " common mixed " eggs are chiefly 
the output of common mixed fowls. To raise fowls of 
one breed only is to cut off, by this one action, much of 
the necessity for color grading. Other gradings will 
still have to be made, such as for shape and size, and in 
the case of brown egg breeds there is still much varia- 
tion in tint. But selection of the most nearly ideal eggs 
for incubation will be more effective than any other 
plan of " grading." The fancier cannot always do this, 
as it may chance that his best hens, from a Standard 
point of view, lay the poorest eggs from the market 
grade view. But the egg fancier can do it to a very 
great degree. He is first to select his breeders from 
the best and most uniform layers, then from the eggs 
of these he again selects for incubation the specimens 
most ideal in every respect. Thus he will soon obviate 
most of the necessity for actual grading of market lots. 
In selling through a commission merchant, he would 
then gain several cents extra price per dozen, which 
would demonstrate to him very quickly the value of 
grading. 

One who has not seen the general market offerings 
can hardly imagine the poor appearance and small size 
of many of these. I once saw the receipts and letters 



STUDYING EGGS 253 

from a New York commission merchant who was han- 
dling the eggs from a certain farm which had introduced 
many modern methods. He spoke especially of the ex- 
tra size and quality of the eggs from this farm. I saw 
also some of the eggs. They were all brown, but not 
graded at all for color, and they did not seem to me to 
be extra large. What would be the happy state of 
mind of such a middleman could he receive eggs fully 
graded to size, shape, and color ? 



XXI 

THE FIELD OF THE AMERICAN STAND- 
ARD OF PERFECTION, AND THE ASSO- 
CIATION 

The Standard Necessary — Membership in the American 
Poultry Association — "Faking" and the Standard — 
The Glossary — Instructions to Judges — Variety De- 
scriptions — American Poultry Association Constitution 
and By-laws — A Powerful Body — Proposed Work 
for the American Poultry Association — Experimental 
Work — Proposed Committee on Claims — Systematic 
Work — Many Women Members — Movement for a 
Women's Branch 

The American Standard of Perfection is copyrighted, 
and quotations of any length are not permitted. The 
Breeder who would raise fancy stock can no more do 
without the standard for his breed than he can do with- 
out other tools and appliances. But, because such may 
like to know in advance just what they are giving their 
$1.50 for, and because those who do not care to go into 
the work of the fancy may, nevertheless, have a lively 
curiosity about it, some resume of the contents of " The 
Standard " will here be given. 

The American Poultry Association, which consists of 
all the poultrymen of the country who can see benefit in 
joining it, and who can also find the $10 which it costs to 
become a member — membership is for life — allows 
no shows to be given under its auspices unless they 
work strictly under its rules. These rules, and de- 

2 54 



THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION 255 




Styles of Feather Marking : Below, Penciled ; Above, at Left, Stippled ; at 
Right, Hackle Feathers, Which But Faintly Show White Lacing. The 
Standard of Perfection Requires These Markings on Some Breeds 



256 THE BEGINNER l\ POULTRY 

mands, down to the color oi the eye, the perk oi 1 1 1 1 * 
tail or the feather, or the bit oi down or stub on the leg of 
a specimen, are definite, detailed, and imperative. Ex- 
hibitors and judges alike are expected to obey them, 
under penalty for failure which may amount to the 

judge losing his job or the exhibitor losing his member 

ship in the American Poultry Association, il he have 
one; or his reputation, or both. 

The Association, as now conducted, has Branches all 
over the United States and Canada; which Branches 
may consist of one state, or of a group of states. There 
are also District Branches, and local Associations may 
join, under certain rules. 

The matter comprising the volume known as "The 
Standard of Perfection" begins with a warning, fol- 
lowed by two introductions, and a two-pa<;o address "to 
the Poultry Associations of America." Exhibitions 
necessarily presuppose judging of birds, and the Lo< al 
Associations are asked by the American Poultry Associ- 
ation to choose, as judges, preferably, those who are- 
members of the American Poultry Association. Under 
the rules, a local Association cannot enter any protest in 
case of a dispute about the placing of awards, ex< ept 
when it appears that the judge has been dishonest, 
ignorant, or careless. It is stated that any exhibitor 
found to have shown "faked birds" shall lose his right 
io compete, and must forfeit cany prize thai his fowls 
had been awarded before the deceil was discovered. 
Inasmuch as the word " faking" now has a standing as 
a term used by judges and carefully defined in the 
Standard of Perfection, the acts whii h it represents 
should now become less frequent, and more possible of 



THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION 257 

punishment than they were when the word had no 
definite meaning. Formerly, no strict line could be 
drawn between legitimate "grooming" and unfair cov- 
ering of defects in any bird on exhibition. The principle 
is given in the words, " any self-evident attempt to de- 
ceive the judge." 

There are many pictorial cuts, a few in color, but 
most of them in black and white. These are used both 
to illustrate defects and to show forth excellencies of 
sections, feathers, or entire birds. There is a diagram 
showing every named section in a bird to be described 
or judged. There are twenty-five such divisions of the 
body and its covering. This diagram and the Glos- 
sary of Technical Terms prepare the student to under- 
stand what may be said in the body of the book. Cor- 
respondence schools, or individual workers who may 
wish to get out glossaries of their own, to illuminate their 
text or other books, must make their own definitions. The 
Standard Glossary comprises ten pages of special terms 
used by poultrymen, many of which are illustrated, as 
well as defined by words. There are several pages of 
specific instructions to judges, both as to score card and 
comparison judging. All general disqualifications ap- 
pear in this part of the book, and are followed by a 
statement of the exact discounts or "cuts" to be made 
for all the common defects that may be expected to 
show in fowls, as exhibited. For instance, counting 
perfection — the ideal never attained — at one hundred, a 
crooked breastbone may be cut from one half to two 
points, according to the gravity of the fault ; irregular 
barring in Plymouth Rocks receives a cut of from one 
half to three times that amount wherever it appears, etc. 



2 5 8 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Nearly fifty such " cuts " are prescribed carefully. 
There are also special disqualifications, which appear 
with variety descriptions, in the body of the book. 




The Author's Favorite Birc 



Indian Runner Ducks 



The remainder of the book consists of variety de- 
scriptions, mostly illustrated by half tones, together 
with the text of those articles of the American Poultry 
Association's Constitution and By-laws which refer to 
the admission of new breeds and varieties, and which 
give the rules under which poultry shows must be held. 
Among such rules are: that no judge may show birds 
in any class which he is to judge, and no exhibitor may 



THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION 259 

show under any judge birds which he has bought of 
this judge within six months previous to the time they 
are to be judged ; that every fowl shown must be the actual 
property of the person showing it, to which affidavit 
must be made if required ; that exhibitors shall make no 
attempt to interfere with or influence judges; that ex- 
hibitors shall have certain rights of appeal, etc. In a 
word, they are in the line of all human experience : viz., 
that it must be made as difficult as possible for men to 
go wrong. The sixteen sections covering these rules 
must be printed on the entry blanks of such shows as 
accept the authority of the American Poultry Associa- 
tion, and are required to be signed in ink by all accepted 
exhibitors. 

Having such a wide field from which to draw, and such 
wide jurisdiction, the American Poultry Association is 
becoming a numerous and a powerful body, whose king- 
dom is likely to increase if it is fortunate enough not to 
make bad blunders as time passes. The fact that all 
Branches have recognized and specific voting privileges, 
and that members may also join the Association direct 
and vote as individuals, gives every portion of our coun- 
try power in training the growth of this important body. 
If the people have the foresight to accept and to use 
this power, as members in attendance upon its delibera- 
tions, they are supreme. 

There has been much discussion as to what work this 
body should take up specifically. Many of the members 
have done much thinking along this line, and various 
suggestions, some valuable and workable, others dubious, 
have been brought out. A utility Standard is one of 
the advance movements suggested, but the Association is 



260 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 




rather skittish when asked to stand publicly for utility 
standards, egg standards, etc. Possibly its joint mind 
sees difficulties which have not occurred to the minds of 
individuals with pet ideas. It has been suggested by 
a strong farm paper published in New York that the 
American Poultry Association form a notable committee 
to investigate the various " Sys- 
tems" thoroughly, and make a 
public statement of its findings. 
One member suggested that the 
Association might take up the co- 
operative marketing of poultry prod- 
ucts, somewhat in line with such 
work in European countries. Many 
feel that the central body should 
make specific and sustained effort 
to educate the public along every 
line of thought and work in con- 
nection with poultry, more directly than through its ex- 
hibitions. Under this head, one says that the buying 
public should be educated as to good and poor quality in 
stock; one suggests that the Association could get out a 
monthly bulletin, giving news items, special information 
along new lines of poultry development, success of Station 
experiments, etc. ; one thinks that important educative and 
protective work could be done through giving all licensed 
judges authority to place charges with the American 
Poultry Association Secretary, whenever anything ques- 
tionable comes to their knowledge ; another thinks its 
great work is so to appeal to utility breeders that they 
shall see the great benefit that would come to them 
through membership in a powerful national body 



Cock, White Laced Red 
Cornish. Breed Re- 
cently Admitted to 
Standard. (Originated 
by Professor W. H. Card, 
Connecticut) 



THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION 261 

Under the head of active support to vital things, 
many believe that the matter of taking up parcels 
post — " with every Congressman and Senator," one puts 
it — and that of putting pressure upon the express com- 
panies to compel better rates and careful handling of 
shipments are the most promising activities. This last 
to include, also, just settlement for claims of loss and 
neglect in transit. One of these members instanced an 
experience of his own to show in what direction the 
power and prestige of the Association could be used. A 
certain shipment of fowls was so smothered by piling 
other packages above and around the coop, that nearly 
two thirds the fowls comprising it were killed. Claim 
for damages was entered. Long delay ensued, with no 
favorable result. Finally, the shipper stated plainly to 
the carrying company that, unless he received early 
satisfaction, he would lay the matter before the American 
Poultry Association. The effectiveness of this was shown 
in the fact that, in less than a week, he received full value 
for the smothered birds. 

One member, high in poultry councils, asserts that 
the government is appropriating thousands of dollars to 
each Experiment Station in our states for investigation 
in all. other branches of agriculture. From this, he 
deduces that poultry also should have the benefit of 
such nursing, and states his belief that our national 
government, "if the proper effort was made," would 
appropriate several thousand dollars each year to each 
state, for poultry investigation. Another suggests that, 
since the United States government has not yet burst 
some of its swaddling bands of red tape sufficiently to take 
a census of any poultry except that carried upon "farms," 



262 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

the American Poultry Association should undertake a 
complete census. Possibly this is the most herculean 
task it has been asked to undertake. 

A Western hustler proposes that the Association appoint 
organizers in general, to the number of six to ten, cover- 
ing the United States, Canada, and Mexico, these to have 
"subs" in the states, and " sub-subs " in the counties. 
Selling the Standard of Perfection is also a part of the 
suggested duties of these organizers. 

A Committee on Claims is suggested by one member ; 
so that, if either express companies or individuals have 
been unfair or have attempted direct fraud, they might 
be compelled either to make losses good or to show their 
own freedom from responsibility. The same man would 
have state inspection of poultry yards and of cold-storage 
goods, the latter being labeled as such, under law. This 
member believes that such a systematic work would 
place the American Poultry Association where it could 
bring about parcels post or any other reform needed. 
He sums his ideas up as follows : " I would make the 
American Poultry Association such an attractive body 
that every man who bred poultry could not help but join." 

These are far from being all the suggestions made 
by members for future activities of the American 
Poultry Association, but they are enough to show all who 
are interested in poultry that there is opportunity 
ahead which may overshadow entirely anything that 
has as yet been accomplished. If "every man who 
bred poultry " should be drawn in by the attractiveness 
and helpfulness of the governing body, all the Begin- 
ners who read this book must be included. Quite a 
proportion of the present membership believe that the 



THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION 263 

Association should not be strictly a fanciers' body, 
which it virtually is at present, but should also make 
itself indispensable to the utility man, and this in such 
wise that he must recognize this service and become a 
member. Strong effort is being made along this line. 

It is but recently that the poultry world rubbed its 
sleepy eyes in awaking to the fact that women form 
presumably about two fifths of those actively interested 
in all matters which are at the present supposed to 
form the especial bailiwick of the American Poultry 
Association. Not long after this, the Secretary of the 
American Poultry Association sent out a circular letter 
to members, whose preamble voiced the Secretary's 
recognition of the important part which women are 
taking in poultry culture, and his belief that the Ameri- 
can Poultry Association could do no greater service 
to the cause it represents than to take an active interest 
in establishing a women's department, to be known 
as " The Ladies' Auxiliary of the American Poultry 
Association." It was proposed that the Auxiliary 
should be conducted along the same lines as the 
Branch Associations already under the Association. 
A part of the purposive outline of this new venture 
was stated thus : " To encourage women to become 
interested in Institute work and to contribute articles 
on all phases of poultry culture to the Poultry Press." 
Probably the worthy Secretary did not know that 
women had been eagerly welcomed by the Poultry 
Press as contributors, for twenty years previously, 
provided that they would work for the serene joy of 
getting their names in print, or of being " a sister " 
to the rest of the public ; or would take their payment 



264 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

in advertising ! However, I think he was utterly sin- 
cere in offering this opening to the women members 
(present and also to-be) toward more systematic and 
specific affiliation with the sub-organizations. The 
name offered was criticized, but the movement was 
met with considerable heartiness by the press, one 
editor saying that there ought to be a thousand women 
enrolled as members of the Association within two 
or three years. Some few women objected to their 
status. One said very positively that she would in- 
fluence the local club to join the American Poultry 
Association, if women were to go in on the same footing 
as men, but she had " no desire to join any sewing 
circle." Apparently, there was no one with immediate 
interest and responsibility sufficient to push the move- 
ment, as it has not yet rounded out to fulfillment, at 
the present writing. It is mentioned here that women in 
especial, among the Beginners, may know what is " in the 
air." There is no doubt, as it seems to me, that women 
poultry keepers as a body or an annex to a body, can get 
all the recognition which they desire, if they manifest that 
desire to those in power: There is no industry in the 
country, probably, with which women are more closely 
connected, or in which they have had more influence. 
This seems to be quite generally admitted, and, as I read 
the signs, I think the men of the American Poultry As- 
sociation would prefer that the women come in "on an 
equal footing," but as a separate Branch. However, 
the American Poultry Association has, at the present 
time, a goodly number of individual women members, 
who, being in, and life members, are not worrying much 
about the status of women therein ! 




Black Minorca Cock "Perfection," a First Prize Winner at New York. 
Courtesy of G. A. Clark, Seymour, Indiana 



THE AMERICAN STANDARD OF PERFECTION 265 

All poultry interests tend to dovetail together. The 
United States government has put out a special bulletin 
on marketing farm eggs. At Denver, in August, 1911, 
it made a direct effort to ally with itself the strength 
of the American Poultry Association, in proposing, 
through Mr. Robert R. Slocum (in charge of the 
United States Government Poultry Plant, Washington, 
D. C.) a plan of cooperative marketing, to be furthered 
by the American Poultry Association Branches. 

The plan proposed that, wherever an American 
Poultry Association member of sufficient business 
enterprise could be found to start a group, a local 
group of producers of eggs for market should form 
a Cooperative Association for selling these eggs. Re- 
ferring to the stupendous losses through deterioration 
of eggs, Mr. Slocum said : " The retailer, the shipper, 
and the buyer do not stand this loss. They simply 
pass it back by reducing the price offered for eggs 
till it rests mainly on the farmer or producer." He 
also affirmed : " The whole success of the scheme rests 
on the building up an irreproachable reputation for 
the eggs." Methods of insuring this appear in the 
set of rules proffered as a model for trial. The real 
grip of the situation rests on gaining this reputation 
and on shortening the time between production and 
consumption. 

The Rules suggested, under which such groups of 
producers might work, are based chiefly on these two 
demands : irreproachable quality, and quick transit to 
consumer. They include : daily gathering ; clean, 
even-sized eggs in clean, uniform cartons ; cool storing, 
when storage is necessary ; stamping each egg and 



266 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

each carton with the number of the producer ; selling 
none of the stamped eggs through any other agencies ; 
separating white from brown, or other required grad- 
ing ; delivery twice a week ; offering no eggs but those 
laid by the producer's own flock. 

A corollary to the plan was that the American 
Poultry Association should aid in securing good, re- 
liable markets for the eggs of the cooperating groups. 
An American Poultry Association seal was also sug- 
gested, " Which could well come to stand for first-class 
quality in eggs." 

As to the link, it was suggested that each cooperative 
group might join the American Poultry Association 
as a " Society member," even though not all were in- 
dividual members. It remains to be seen what may 
be the outworking of this plan for the help of producers 
and Beginners. 



XXII 

POULTRY SCHOOLS 

Sixty-five Great Schools in Line — The Schools as Short 
Cuts — " Specializing " — Expenses at Cornell — Cer- 
tificates of Proficiency — Accommodations — Connecti- 
cut's courses — Neither Pains nor Expense Spared — 
Pennsylvania Offerings — Poultry and Fruit — Work 
at Various Stations 

The latest information at my command states that 
courses of instruction in agriculture are now given in 65 
of our colleges and universities, these being in operation 
in every state. None are credited to Alaska. It is my 
impression that Alaska has now been added to the list 
of commonwealths giving poultry instruction ; although 
not in a college, it may be. The report says : " About 
50 of these institutions also provide special, short, and 
correspondence courses in the different branches of 
agriculture, including agronomy, horticulture, animal 
husbandry, poultry raising, cheese making, dairying, 
sugar making, rural engineering, farm mechanics, and 
other technical subjects. With few exceptions, each of 
these colleges offers free tuition to residents of the 
state in which it is located. In all the excepted cases, 
scholarships are open to promising and energetic stu- 
dents ; and, in all, opportunities are found for some to 
earn part of their expenses by their own labor." Thus, 
there is no need for the Beginner who is free to go and 
come and in good health to assume the risks which accom- 
pany taking up a business of which he knows nothing. 

267 



POULTRY SCHOOLS 269 

It is true that most of the books used in the Poultry 
Courses are the same that may be bought in open mar- 
ket by any who wish. It is true that the courses are 
often too short to be much more than a beginning in 
needed instruction. It has been true, in some cases, 
that the Director of the Poultry Course has not himself 
known all that was to be known about poultry. But 
there are some things to be gained at these schools 
for poultry instruction, which cannot be gained outside 
them. A level-headed man usually manages them; in- 
struction is given in chemistry, drainage, building, and 
many other lines which the book student would probably 
omit ; special attention is given to accuracy of mind and 
method ; experts are engaged who not only teach students 
what they think the students ought to want to know, but 
who encourage questions, so that the students may 
really get what they need to know. Above all, the prac- 
tice work under oversight, and under the necessity of 
making records and giving reports, is of value far beyond 
book knowledge ; which one must apply by continually 
making errors because of having no real standard of 
judgment. Errors are costly. Schooling is costly, also, 
it may — possibly — be said. But very little besides one's 
own support need be expended, and, as this is a necessity 
anywhere, the real cost is only the loss of one's earning 
time, and the difference in cost between support at the 
schools and support elsewhere. Lads under age going 
from home would perhaps find support expense in- 
creased, although it is kept as near cost to the Institutions 
as possible ; but workers who pay for their board else- 
where would be quite likely to find their living ex- 
pense actually lessened at the colleges. And, in all 



270 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

cases, if a deserving student needs a lift, he is likely to 
get it, and in a way that will preserve his self-respect 
and independence. 

The colleges which offer short poultry courses usually 
put out a circular describing briefly and clearly just 
what they purpose to give the student. Some of them 
offer courses of different lengths, or a shorter course in 
the summer season — or, at the shortest, a " Farmers' 
Week" is given, in which the student, be he lad of four- 
teen or white-haired head of a family, may specialize — 
attractive word! — just by choosing from the almost 
numberless lectures and demonstrations those which have 
to do with poultry. " Poultry Husbandry " is a finely 
rounded new term which came up when it was needed. 
The professors who cover this work at the colleges are pro- 
fessors of Poultry Husbandry, and this word covers all that 
is included, the best, I believe, of any term available to us. 

Cornell University's circular, for instance, offers a sched- 
ule of the " Winter Course in Poultry Husbandry." The 
one which lies before me was put out in November, 191 1, 
for the course beginning November 28 of that year, cov- 
ering twelve weeks, and ending February 23, 19 12. This 
course was one of five of these specials, the others being on 
General Agriculture, Dairy Industry, Horticulture, and 
Home Economics. It was '93 when the first course in 
General Agriculture was given, but 1906 before Cornell 
was fully awake and ready to offer the Home Economics 
Course for the girls. The year previous, the boys and 
girls were both provided for in the Short Course in 
Poultry Husbandry. 

Expenses are greater at Cornell than at some of the 
institutions ; being stated as now probably averaging about 



POULTRY SCHOOLS 



271 



$95 for the twelve weeks at Cornell. The State Grange has 
had 12 fifty-dollar scholarships for members of its order, 
"to be awarded to men and women who attain the 
highest standing on competitive examination." The 
Masters of the Pomona Granges had these in charge. 
There are also special prizes offered for creditable work. 
In 1 908-1 909 these numbered nearly 20, and the " Poul- 
try Department Prize " was won by a young woman, 
for having had the highest general average standing in 
all studies. One prize was awarded " the most useful 
student in the Winter Poultry Course Club." The 
students who have successfully passed all required ex- 
aminations, and who have completed a short course, may 
become candidates for a Certificate in Poultry Hus- 
bandry, to attain which they must spend a full year in 
" successful work at an approved poultry plant," from 
which they must report regularly to the college, give 
all required information about the work, and be ready 
for inspection at any time during the year. There are 
no examinations for admission to the short Winter Course 
in Poultry Husbandry, but a good common school edu- 
cation is necessary to good work, and those weak in 
arithmetic and English are advised to review before 
going to Ithaca. Courses are open to both men and 
women, from seventeen years upward. Accommodations 
have been limited, and early application is necessary to 
gain admission. Fifty-six students has been the utmost 
limit. It is hoped that the new building voted by the 
state will give room for all who need the work. I be- 
lieve there will then be room for 125 in the Poultry 
Husbandry Course. Instruction is divided as fairly as 
possible between the study of textbooks, required read- 



272 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

ing, recitation, and practice work. References are 
required ; they must be from people of standing in the 
community from which the student comes. 

Cornell University reported, in 191 1, twenty-five of 
her former poultry students as connected with poultry 
Departments in Educational Institutions. One of these 
entered the Bureau of Animal Industry, and another be- 
came a Professor, Bureau of Chemistry, Washington, 
D. C. More than half of them have contributed leaflets 
and bulletins to our poultry literature. One is Assistant 
Professor in Poultry Husbandry at Cornell University, 
and several others assist there also. Two are women : 
one a teacher of Poultry Husbandry in the Georgia 
Normal and Industrial School ; the other is Assistant 
in Poultry Husbandry at Cornell University. 

Professor James E. Rice, the first Professor in Poultry 
Husbandry at Cornell, is still its animating spirit. A 
man of genial temper and full of conservative common 
sense, he is ranked as leading Professor in Poultry 
Husbandry in the United States. 

Connecticut issues a Quarterly <( C. A. C. Bulletin." 
The one for the autumn of 191 1 tells of a course in Poul- 
try Husbandry covering the period from February 14 to 
March 24. Instruction is divided between the class- 
room and the poultry plant practice work "and teaches 
practically every phase of the poultry industry." There 
are 71 general lectures, by professor Frederick H. Stone- 
burn. Special lectures by experts and outside professors 
are also a feature. Each student is expected to do as 
much practical work as his time permits, "including 
construction of houses, judging, scoring, besides the 
usual work with feeding, incubation, brooding," etc. 







•Sago O 





O ^ ® O 



gogo^O 



O 



C p 



274 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

This circular was for the tenth annual course. A poul- 
try judge was specially engaged to be present during 
the entire course, instructing in all points covered by 
professional judges and necessary to the breeding and 
exhibiting fancier. Professor F. H. Stoneburn is the 
leader in Poultry Husbandry at Storrs at the present 
writing. 

Maine put out advertising in the best poultry papers, 
in November, 1910, giving the lure of her work in the 
"Study of Poultry Husbandry." I quote: "The Uni- 
versity is endeavoring to offer as full and complete 
courses in Poultry Husbandry as it possibly can, and 
will spare no pains nor expense to put its instructional 
work on an equally high basis with its experimental 
work." The two plants for these two classes of work 
are entirely separate. Maine offers five choices in poul- 
try work for students : (a) that in the regular Four Years' 
Course, leading to a degree in connection with other 
agricultural work ; {b) the same in the Two- Year School 
Course ; (c) The Three Weeks' Short Course ; {d) The 
Three Weeks' Short Course ; (c) The Poultry Institute. 
No tuition fees for the short term work. " Expense for 
books is small. Board and room can be obtained at 
reasonable rates." Maine has gotten a hold which has 
been slow in coming to the poultry schools. It states : 
" Many farmers and their sons and daughters take the 
shorter course in order to be better prepared to make 
money with poultry on the farm." When this work was 
in its infancy in this country, almost none of the farm 
youth presented themselves as students. Better pros- 
pects and more available information have doubtless led 
to betterment along this line. And, I desire to call at- 



POULTRY SCHOOLS 275 

tention again to the fact that Maine is the only state 
that produces 100 eggs as an average for all her hens. 
You who read, will, I think, make the obvious inference 
as to cause and effect. 

I have also, before me, the notes regarding the Penn- 
sylvania Short Course for winter of 1909-1910, put out 
by the School of Agriculture, State College (this is the 
address), Pennsylvania. This was a twelve-weeks' 
course. The Pennsylvania people evidently bear in 
mind the fact that the farmer is very apt to be "the 
general farmer" and thus need all-around instruction. 
Besides offering lectures on the usual topics, practice 
work in preparing fowls for market, in judging and 
scoring, in constructing poultry houses and appliances, 
in running incubators, etc., the college offers combina- 
tion work. I quote : "The course in poultry husbandry 
is intended to furnish such instruction and practice as 
will enable young men and women to become successful 
poultry keepers either as a regular business or as a 
very profitable branch of farm work. Hence, the stu- 
dents in poultry husbandry receive lectures in general 
agriculture, animal husbandry, and dairy husbandry. 
There are lectures in agricultural chemistry, soils, 
manures, and fertilizers, crops, veterinary science, and 
bookkeeping. Or, if the student desires, he may com- 
bine work in poultry husbandry with instruction in 
horticulture." 

The Wisconsin work is rather new, and the 191 1— 
1912 Bulletin shows it as "primarily for Undergradu- 
ates." Students just beginning the Agricultural College 
work may take, in the first six months, Elementary work, 
Pen Management, and Poultry Judging, and gain seven 



276 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

credits for all. In the second semester, they may take 
Elementary Poultry Raising, Incubation and Brooding, 
and an " advanced course" under the head of " Poultry 
Management"; and gain seven to nine credits for all. 
" Poultry Practice," taken throughout the year, aims " to 
familiarize the student with the ordinary work about a 
poultry farm." Under this come carpentry, caponizing, 
etc. Assistant Professor of Poultry Husbandry, J. G. 
Halpin, instructs in all these courses. 

The New Jersey appropriation was passed in 1911. 
Under date of January 2, 19 12, Professor A. R. Lewis 
wrote me that a class of 28 was at work, 1 1 of whom 
were women. In other states, the proportion of women 
has held very low, as a rule. The new buildings at New 
Brunswick are in themselves an experiment in construc- 
tion, life of various brands of roofing, etc. 

New Jersey put out an " Organization Circular for 
Educational Work," with poultry. This plans for 
County Associations, and a State Board of Poultry 
Husbandry, to be composed of two members from each 
County Association. The Constitutions are practical, a 
provision of that for the County Associations being for 
a library with a librarian, a part of whose duties is to 
make a summarized report both of the condition and 
the use of the books. It also provides a means of in- 
creasing the library. 

The plan provides also for a Reading Course, outlines 
such a course for a full year, and offers a list of refer- 
ence books for the library. This list at first consisted 
of ten books. I am glad to know that my " How to 
Keep Hens for Profit " was found worthy to rank 
among this first ten books of reference, concerning 



POULTRY SCHOOLS 277 

which the officials say that it " should be the aim of every 
Association to have at least one copy of each in its 
library." 

Special lectures are also urged as a part of the educa- 
tional privileges of such Associations. 

I have felt a close personal interest in several of these 
Stations which are doing work with poultry : in Cornell, 
through friendship with Professor Rice, and because 
New York is my native state ; in New Jersey, because 
New Jersey is my adopted state ; in Rhode Island, 
because I was a student in the first Short Poultry Course 
in the United States, offered by little Rhode Island ; in 
Connecticut, because I have known Professor Stoneburn 
since his graduation, and have been on the ground and 
seen what he has done with almost no facilities. On 
the foundation laid by Rhode Island, the other Stations 
are building strongly. The teaching is marvelous, when 
we consider how much is crowded into one of the Short 
Courses. The Bulletins are informative, and the col- 
leges carefully avoid being too "rosy" in their attitude. 
" Facts, and more facts," might well be considered their 
war cry. And, while practice work, under training, is 
worth more than unassimilated facts, the facts, the dis- 
cussions, and the training all together, do make a whole 
more valuable than one could reasonably forecast as 
resulting from the short period usually allowed. The 
fact that, with the Short-Course poultry students it is 
" This one thing I do," with whole-hearted eagerness, 
counts tremendously in the result. I have seen no other 
students so universally eager as poultry students. 

Poultry farming combines so well with fruit farming 
that this ought to make a very attractive combination to 



278 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

the son who elects to stay on the farm. I am often 
amazed to see the way in which the best business men 
put their confidence in fruit. An apple evaporator of 
my acquaintance, who followed the fruit crop of the 
country year by year, evaporating in whatever part of 
the country was most prodigal of fruit in any one year, 
set a 45-acre farm entirely to apples just before he was 
ready to settle down. A young fellow of 18, of my ac- 
quaintance, who, years ago, was left with a mortgaged 
hill farm and a family of seven on his hands, set the 
whole farm to fruit, and now is the envy of all the 
neighborhood for his handsome furniture, good clothes, 
and other evidences of prosperity. But I think he has 
worked harder than any one of those who envy him ! 

In the middle West lives a fancier of poultry who has 
built up one of the best plants in the country, and does 
a very large and successful business. All his fine flocks 
run in orchards — they could not have a better environ- 
ment — and it is said that he could any day give up his 
poultry and live easily, even luxuriously, from his or- 
charding. There are no two products that grow to- 
gether more naturally than poultry and tree fruits, 
unless one shut active hens up with a newly set lot 
of small trees. This is likely to be the death of some 
of the trees, unless green feed is supplied with extreme 
liberality. 

The list put out by the government in February, 191 1, 
shows that Colorado, though having a man on the staff 
in charge of poultry investigation, and having a Farmers' 
Week in midwinter, does not offer a poultry course. 
Connecticut offers a Six-Weeks' Poultry Course. Indiana 
has not only a man as instructor in Poultry Husbandry, 













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280 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

but one on Extension Work in Poultry. The Iowa Sta- 
tion has a Poultryman on its staff, who is also an A.B. 
The College, itself, has a One-Year Course in Poultry 
Husbandry. The Kansas Station has an Assistant in 
Egg Investigation, and a Superintendent of Poultry 
Husbandry. Maine has a Poultryman, besides the Bi- 
ologist, who gives much attention to the poultry work. 
Maine offers "a Three- Weeks' Course in Domestic Sci- 
ence and Poultry Management," apparently a woman's 
affair. Maryland has an Associate Poultryman. Mas- 
sachusetts Agricultural College offers a Short Course in 
Poultry Culture and has its own Instructor in Poultry 
Husbandry. Minnesota School of Agriculture has its 
Instructor in Poultry. Mississippi has its Poultryman 
on the Station Staff. Montana Agricultural College has 
its Instructor in Poultry and gives a One-Week Course. 
North Dakota has its Assistant Poultry Husbandman, a 
B.S. Ohio has a B.S. who gives part time to Poultry In- 
vestigation. Oregon has a Reading Course of five les- 
sons in Poultry Husbandry. Pennsylvania College has its 
own Instructor in Poultry Husbandry, and the Station also 
has a Poultry Husbandman. Rhode Island, the first to 
offer a systematized course, has a Six- Weeks' Course and 
its own Instructor. Tennessee has a Two- Weeks' Course. 
Utah Agricultural College has its Assistant in Poultry 
Husbandry, a B.S. West Virginia has a Twelve- Weeks' 
Course in the College proper. Wisconsin has a B.S. A. 
in charge of Poultry Husbandry, on the Station Staff. 
The Station is a Department of the University, under 
the control of the Board of Regents. I think it is quite 
likely that "Animal Husbandry," in some of the states, 
includes poultry, although it is not specifically men- 



POULTRY SCHOOLS 



281 



tioned. As a rule, the Stations are under government 
aid, and separate from the Colleges proper. A list of 
Stations will be given in the back of this book, for the 
help of those who may want to keep in touch with what 
their states are doing with poultry. The strong under- 
current making for poultry instruction and state aid to 




Sicilian Buttercups, Egg-Laying Contest, Storrs. Nova Scotian Birds. 
Buttercups Claim a High Record. (Courtesy of Connecticut Agricultural 
College) 

the industry will doubtless tend to increase continuously 
the number of those giving full poultry instruction. 
Connecticut was the first to offer a Summer School of 
Poultry "especially planned to meet the need of teachers, 
business and professional people." It reports that the 
poultry class " has been considered the best class in the 
Summer School since this feature was introduced " and 
the students of the Summer and Winter Courses to- 



282 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

gether are said to form the largest body of poultry stu- 
dents in the country in one state for the year, although 
Cornell closely disputes in numbers. Connecticut is 
fortunate in having the immediate help of Professor 
L. F. Rettger, Biologist of Sheffield Scientific School, 
and Herbert K. Job, the State Entomologist, while Pro- 
fessors W. H. Card and D. J. Lambert are near at 
hand. Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, and Quebec gave 
aid in 191 1, through their Professors, and other promi- 
nent men gave lectures. Cornell is probably the best 
organized and best equipped of all the Stations giving 
poultry instruction. The students adore its open-hearted, 
enthusiastic, capable Professor, James E. Rice, and I 
heard the Acting Dean of Agriculture rate the poultry 
work there as high as any in the entire College. 

Professor Rice's latest project is a " Poultry Testing 
Station" to which any one in the state may send 12 
birds to be tested for one, or two years, for vitality, egg 
production, and prepotency. The layers will be officially 
trap nested, and pedigree hatching and brooding will be 
carried on as a beginning for " line breeding for vigor, 
prolificacy, hatching power, market quality, and economy 
of production of flesh and eggs." Several other aims are 
mentioned in the Advance Bulletin ; but, in connection 
with what is given in this book in the chapter on Line 
Breeding it is thought that the item here given will be 
the one to fix best in the Beginner's mind the value of 
line breeding of the right sort, and of inherited power 
in every desired direction. 

An enormous amount of poultry instruction is offered 
in this country, entirely outside the poultry schools, al- 
though the professors of these schools often have a 



POULTRY SCHOOLS 283 

hand in it. A chief textbook used at Cornell is the 
work of the man who instituted the first poultry short 
course in the United States, Professor A. A. Brigham, 
now of the South Dakota Station. The poultry papers 
number scores — many scores. Some are born and some 
die, each year, so that it is difficult to know the exact 
number. Many of the editors find time to write poultry 



New Jersey's Long Laying House. Reported Colder Than the " Clark " House 

books, and I have known some of them long enough to 
know that they are themselves learners, gaining some- 
thing each year. I would not trust any business man 
who was not of this caliber ! The United States govern- 
ment has put out poultry bulletins as needed. Indeed, 
I have in my library an old United States bibliography 
of poultry literature, giving twenty-nine large pages 
merely to list the poultry publications then in existence, 
including some English and French monographs and 
larger books. If such was our wealth nearly fifteen 
years ago, what of the present ? The more marvelous 
growth of the industry has been made, and all the work 
of the poultry schools has been done within that period. 



284 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

The very manufactures of poultry appliances have 
added largely to poultry literature. And, although one 
needs to read with open eyes and judgment agog, there 
are some catalogues of this kind which contain as good 
literature on their especial topics as can be had any- 
where. It is a rather good education to read just these 
catalogues, provided that one can keep his head and 
balance one against another. Milo Hastings has made 
the unqualified statement that practically all the litera- 
ture of poultry has been written by those who had some- 
thing to sell to the poultryman. At least three fairly 
reputable poultry papers, which furnish good reading 
matter in their columns, have snatched at the chance to 
make money from advertising and selling books of the 
" secret and system " type. 

One of our more prominent poultry papers said, some 
time ago, that careful study showed that about two fifths 
of its readers were women. It is believed that more 
than half the people actually engaged in raising the 
chickens are women with their children. The United 
States government has issued a special Bulletin outlin- 
ing methods by which Women's Institutes may be organ- 
ized and conducted. In 1910, 15 states held Institutes 
for women, and 160 sessions of institutes for young 
people were held. There are also special Institutes for 
youths who have left the public school, from the age of 
14 upward, just at the period when they are choosing 
their work for life. The teaching is especially intended 
to show how to make money with farming. 

The Boys' and Girls' Clubs in the public school are 
different. The government makes the frank statement 
that the only way to teach some fathers better methods 



POULTRY SCHOOLS 285 

of farming is through their boys. In 1910, over 46,000 
boys were enrolled in Corn Clubs. Prize winners in four 
states were given diplomas of merit and trips to Wash- 
ington. The next year, every Southern state offered such 
trips, through bankers' associations, boards of trade, 
educational associations ; also through private citizens 
and through state fairs ; while governors and Superin- 
tendents of public instruction offered diplomas to all 
boys, who would make excellent records. 

Next to studying how to grow corn will inevitably come 
how to feed it, and how to do other things. With the 
mother, the boys and girls and the older youth all waking 
to the opportunity ready to their grasp, and with the 
Poultry Clubs in the Public Schools, the reign of igno- 
rance and indifference to the farm will surely be dealt 
an overcoming blow. 

Even the wisest in poultry matters dare not venture 
to forecast what will be the amazing developments in 
this field of work between 1912 and 1920. With New 
York establishing Agricultural High Schools as fast as 
the people will support them ; with Arkansas leading in 
putting instruction in poultry culture into the public 
schools, where every child can be taught ; with Station 
after Station making special efforts toward poultry in- 
struction ; with Boys' and Girls' Clubs starting up here 
and there ; with two wide-reaching Competitions already 
on, from which reports go out and are published broad- 
cast every month of the year, who shall say to what we 
shall attain ? 

The many raise poultry, it is true ; more will raise it 
in the near future ; we have something like five million 
farms, the government says, where poultry is raised every 



286 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

year. But, it would take an egg a clay from every one 
of those farms, to give New York City alone one egg 
apiece for that day, for each dweller within her greater 
limits. It doesn't seem much to ask, that each person 
shall have one egg a day ; but, with eggs at five cents 
apiece, as they were at wholesale at midwinter, it would 
take $250,000 to give each of those hungry New Yorkers 
their one egg each for that one day. If they had it every 
day — ah me ; you figure it ! I cannot believe my figures. 
They make it over $90,000,000. Just for one egg a day 
all the year for one city full of people eager for eggs ! 

Eggs have been going up, up, up because demand 
exceeded supply, much of the year. What if the de- 
mand for poultry instruction in the schools should kill 
the goose that lays the golden eggs ? What if we, one 
day, raise so many eggs that prices go down, down, 
down? Aweel, that day is dim in the future; and, at 
all events, the hungry people will be fed, and that will 
take one care from the shoulders of the social reformers. 



XXIII 

PRACTICAL LAYING CONTESTS 

"Somebody" and Public Contests — Two Opponents of 
Competitions — Australian Reports and Methods — 
Proportion of Food Cost to Value of Product — Four 
Leading Breeds — The Leghorn Adapted to Mild 
Climates — 18 Pens with 200-egg Averages — Mor- 
tality During Tests — Deductions from Australian Ex- 
periences — New American Competitions, Connecticut 
and Missouri 

During the 20 years previous to 191 1, there were a 
number of attempts at laying contests in this country. 
In these contests, birds were usually under the handling 
of their several owners, the proof of results required be- 
ing a sworn statement before a local notary. A certain 
book on heavy laying was based largely on the published 
results of such a contest. The author has since "re- 
canted." One College Bulletin was made up of the 
history and outcome of a certain competition conducted 
by and reported by the owners of the several flocks. 
While only supposedly reliable men would be selected 
for such work, there is abundant room for lack of 
public confidence in a contest of this stamp. As a 
matter of fact, in any contest whatever, there must be 
some leaning on the character of the men engaged in the 
work ; since we must have human instruments. But 
there is good reason for requiring that such contests be 
conducted in a way such that temptation toward and op- 
portunity for deceit shall be minimized to the last pos- 
sible degree. 

287 



PRACTICAL LAYING CONTESTS 289 

During the 20-year period above noted, breeders and 
fanciers and some few utility men took up space at inter- 
vals, in the poultry and agricultural publications, urging 
that "somebody" ought to arrange a series of public 
contests for the stimulation of the poultry industry in 
America. Since America got into touch with the Aus- 
tralian competitive work, begun nearly a decade ago, 
such items have become more numerous and more insist- 
ent. One American poultry journalist, in especial, Mr. 
Miller Purvis, was prominent in supporting this idea. 
When, however, a great daily took up the work inter- 
nationally in 191 1, giving out a Summer Prospectus fol- 
lowing by a few weeks the published inception of a 
national competition opened by the Missouri Experiment 
Station, protests were voiced by two prominent poultry 
writers. The editor of Farm Poultry refers to the first 
competition under the heading, " The Latest Imported 
Utility Fad," quotes a writer in an Australian paper as 
saying that Australia's competitions, as at present con- 
ducted, are " a waste of good material and a menace to the 
industry," and avers that, in general, " a laying com- 
petition is essentially amateurish and inconclusive." 
Mr. Thomas F. Rigg, a clever journalist and a man 
of unusual balance of mind and sanity of outlook, 
said : " Our idea of nothing doing, of waste of time, 
energy, and money, is a ' laying contest.' ' : At the same 
time, some of the most progressive of state and county 
Fair Associations were advertising one-week laying com- 
petitions as a part of the attractions of the Fairs. 

All the rest of the poultry world which parades in 
print, as far as I have seen its expression of opinion, 
hailed the incipient American contests as solid proof of 



290 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

progress. The fact that they were to be handled at two 
of our well-proven Experiment Stations made the poultry 
contingent generally give them a warm welcome, and 
put into them that snap of public interest which they 
would otherwise have lacked utterly. 

Inasmuch as the reports from the one most important 
series of poultry contests up to 191 1 have been received 
in utter good faith by poultry folk in general, it may be 
worth while to give a little time to a study of their con- 
ditions and their published results. The Beginner may 
find here at least a stimulus to some very helpful pon- 
dering. This notable series, now covering nine years, 
191 1-1912 being the tenth, — known as "The Australian 
Laying Competitions," — was planned and doubtless 
financed by a daily newspaper in Sydney, N. S. W. But, 
knowing that such contests must be " open to the pub- 
lic " not only as to entrance, but also as to knowledge of 
all the detail work, and that they must be handled by 
men above suspicion, the originators placed the work 
under the handling of the Hawkesbury Agricultural Col- 
lege. 

Poultry raisers of New South Wales have always been 
the chief entrants. New Zealand tried her luck, and 
America took a fling two years in succession, but it was 
found that the long preliminary voyage was too great a 
handicap to allow the long-distance birds to compete 
fairly ; though, even with this, a pen of Rose-Comb 
Brown Leghorns from America gained one six-months' 
first prize, together with the breed prize for the same 
year ; also the distinction of paying the most profit above 
cost of feed for a full year. 

A White Wyandotte breeder succeeded in getting 



29: 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



well toward the top, and a Rhode Island Red pen from 
America was eighteenth in a list of about 100 contestants. 
In this competition, 4 pens rolled up market incomes 
above $24 for each pen of 6 birds. This is $4 or more 
for each hen from eggs alone. In two cases, the aver- 
age income was $4.8 r. 



p ' 








M 


Bam 



Pen of White Wyandottes, International Competition. 
Storrs, Connecticut 



Agricultural College, 



The question as to most profit narrows chiefly to that 
of which can be fed most cheaply. Going back to the 
consideration of classes, we may say that we might ex- 
pect it to be a general rule that the Mediterranean 
classes would eat least, birds of the medium-sized 
American type next, and the ten- and twelve-pound 
Asiatics most. This is only common sense, and the 
real question is . In what proportion does the feed con- 



PRACTICAL LAYING CONTESTS 293 

sumed by each of these types stand to the numbers of 
eggs which they lay ? No one can answer this question 
absolutely, as it depends in some degree upon strain, 
method of feeding, handling, climate, etc. A rough 
estimate based upon experience might be : if the Asi- 
atics be counted as numbering 100 to consume a certain 
amount of feed, this same amount of the same kinds of 
feed might serve 150 Americans or 200 Mediterraneans. 
Yet all these things vary with conditions. 

In the many Australian tests, conducted successively 
during the early years of this century, under one skilled 
handler, the results point to Leghorns, Wyandottes, 
Orpingtons, and Langshans as the best layers for this 
particular climate and handling, out of some 25 selected 
popular varieties. After 1903, less than a dozen 
breeds were entered for competition. During 1908- 
1909, the two-year competition in which 50 pens were 
entered covered only eight varieties, belonging to six 
breeds, among which the Langshan does not appear. 
Nearly half of these were White Leghorns. A poultry- 
man of wide experience, commenting upon the report, 
says that the results were by no means full proof that 
the Leghorns were so greatly in the lead, but the rather 
that this expert knew better how to handle Leghorns 
than he knew how to handle the heavier breeds. 

A bit of side testimony on this point may be gleaned 
from an Australian Agricultural Report, wherem the 
government expert states that certain breeds do far 
better in Australia than do others. Australia's temper- 
ature is quite variant, ranging from that of latitude 10 
to latitude 40 degrees, while New South Wales itself 
covers about the distance between 30 and 38 degrees 



294 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

south latitude. This is almost the same as the reach from 
northern Maryland to northern Florida, and would seem 
to be exactly the climate in which the Leghorns and 
others of their type would be expected to flourish es- 
pecially well. They would feel heat far less than more 
heavily fluffed birds, while their susceptible heads and 
thinly clothed bodies would not have to endure extremes 
of cold ; therefore they might be expected to lay well 
during almost the entire year. Strange as it may ap- 
pear, the same varieties which appear at the head of 
the lists, appear also, in other pens, almost at the foot. 
In one list, the first nine pens are Leghorns, Orpingtons, 
and Wyandottes ; but seven of the lowest nine are also 
Leghorns, Orpingtons, and Wyandottes ! This is far 
better proof of difference in flocks or strains than it is of 
difference in breeds. Yet, in the latest report from these 
competitions to hand, the lowest record was made by a pen 
of birds of a certain variety, whose owner had twice won 
the first prize with the same variety ! The best record 
for the second year (two-year competition) was made, 
not by the Leghorns, but by the Black Orpingtons. 

In the latest report available as I write, we are told that 
only seven varieties in three breeds entered the competi- 
tion at all. The rest had dropped out, discouraged by 
failures to win. In the third year of the three-year con- 
tinuous competition, one pen reached the 200-egg mark. 
In the latest reports for one year, 18 pens made an av- 
erage of above 200 eggs each for the year covered. 

We get, in these tests, a very good idea of what may 
fairly be expected from the best available birds, under 
a certain kind of handling. The averages for all 
were: for the first year of the series, 130; gaining 



296 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

gradually up to 1909, the figures read, 163, 152, 166, 
r 7 x > l 73> l %°> !8o. The cost of feeding was reported at 
$1.62 in the 1909-19 10 test, and the average profit over 
cost of feed was $1.58. This basis of comparison en- 
ables any Beginner to figure what any desired number 
of birds may bring in for him, always assuming the best 
of care and feed and conditions. 

In the ninth Australian contest, seventeen pens of 
Indian Runners competed against one pen of Cantonese 
ducks and two pens of Buff Orpington ducks. The 
Runners stood first to ninth, the Cantonese next, the 
Orpingtons sixteenth and seventeenth. Five other pens 
were in a second-year test at the same time : four were 
Runners, one Orpingtons. The Orpingtons finished 
lowest. The first three pens of hens in the second year 
laid 994, 958, 939; the first three pens of Runners laid 
1244, 1094, and 1075, respectively. This speaks well 
for the Runners, the best pen averaging above 207 in 
their second year, and the lowest of the three giving 
179 in the second year. As this is nearly double what 
United States hens average, it may be considered a re- 
markable record of performance. 

It remains now to consider a matter which, no doubt, 
affects the finals very greatly, yet which many students 
of these reports would entirely fail to take into consider- 
ation. I call the especial attention of all Beginners to 
the fact that these layers were handled without the 
annoying presence of males in the laying pens, and that 
they were penned in groups of six. This agrees closely 
with the practice of two of our American "Systems" 
which require that the birds be kept in very small 
groups. They differ widely from the tenets of another 



PRACTICAL LAYING CONTESTS 297 

of these same "Systems 1 ' in which the birds are car- 
ried, according to the testimony, in flocks of many 
hundreds. In the latter case, profits more than four 
times as great as those gained in the Australian tests 
are claimed ! Prices of eggs average higher here 
recently, so that this may account for one half of the 
discrepancy. Where the rest may come in, is, I think, 
a good problem for the Beginner to study ! 

The Beginner would do well, also, to consider, briefly, 
a single sentence in the reports from Australia as to 
losses in the flock : " The general mortality of the tests 
is practically all caused by ovarian weakness." This 
can mean only one thing, viz., that, in the effort to 
stimulate, through scores of generations, the laying 
capacity of our domestic birds, we have put such a 
strain upon the organs of reproduction that weakness in 
the female often shows there first, even in such lots as 
have been especially selected for testing, and are pre- 
sumably above average in vigor of constitution. 

But what is the conclusion ? Man, in general, keeps 
hens primarily, not for pleasure, but for profit from their 
product. If he cannot get the profit, he does not want 
the birds, except as a matter of convenience. We can- 
not, then, reverse our treatment, so as not to require 
large production. And if this be the case, we must 
make every effort to grow lusty stock, to give the 
maximum of fresh air and exercise which make for 
vigorous health, and to show at least some reasonable- 
ness of mind in our requirements as to production. 

In one of our State Bulletins, not long ago, a report of 
above nineteen per cent of losses during about fifteen 
months was given out. If any practical handler of fowls 



298 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



for profit were to meet with such losses, he would feel 
obliged to give up poultry keeping. To the contrary, 
however, it is found true that some who in former years 
argued that poultry did not pay its handlers, are now 
talking about the great profits in poultry. Actual 




Curtain-Front Laying Competition House, Connecticut Agricultural College, 
Storrs. All These Houses Are New, and All Alike 



annual losses, with average good handling, need not go 
above four or five per cent. One firm claims a loss of 
less than one per cent, in the laying stock. 

The deductions which the manager of the Australian 
tests made at the close of the eighth of the series, briefly 
given, are as follows : — 

a. Egg production will pay well. 

b. Poultry farming demands only small areas. 

c. It can be made to pay, even when buying all the 
feeds. 

d. Good strains of good breeds pay best. 

c. The fewer the number of breeds handled, the 
more improvement. 



PRACTICAL LAYING CONTESTS 299 

f. Small pens (in numbers) give best results. 

g. Varied diet is best, but maize is profitable, in fair 
proportion. 

h. Abundance of feed is safer than skimping. 

One of the American Competitions to which attention 
was called at the beginning of this chapter has just taken 
shape as these lines are written. As in Australia, a 
daily has come forward to finance the project. It takes 
the large risks, but plans to make good for itself by 
charging a stiff entrance fee of $25 per pen. This 
periodical is known as The Philadelphia North American. 
Connecticut Agricultural College, Storrs, Connecticut, 
has accepted the responsibility and the work of conduct- 
ing the competitions. • Buildings have gone up on ground 
which is fresh, not having carried poultry heretofore. 
Entries are from the United States, Canada, New 
Brunswick, and England. There is a list of worth-while 
prizes, and the public hopes much from the project. An 
Advisory Board, comprising the names of a number of 
the best known poultry raisers, instructors, etc., will 
share the planning and the responsibility. Professor 
Frederick H. Stoneburn, of the Agricultural College, 
is brimful of enthusiasm and will do his utmost to make 
good, as he has always done even when less well 
equipped and with only his own state to please. 

Just before the news of this contest of international 
interest was given out, the state of Missouri advertised 
a competition, national in character, to go through at the 
State Experiment Station, Mountain Grove, Missouri, 
under the charge of the Secretary of the State Poultry 
Association, T. E. Quisenberry. 19 12 promises to be 



PRACTICAL LAYING CONTESTS 



301 



decidedly an interesting year, and the Beginner of 191 3 
and later years may find knowledge accessible to him which 
no Beginner might obtain theretofore. Poultry history is 
making so fast that portions of this chapter have been 
rewritten twice since the first casting. As an instance 
of this very point, New Jersey, Ohio, and Maryland have 




The Black Orpington Leading Pen, Early in Missouri Competition, at Feed 
Time. (Courtesy of Missouri Experiment Station) 

made state appropriations since the government list was 
compiled and since the chapters of this book were begun, 
early in 191 1. Also, the first reports from the newly 
instituted competitions have begun to come in, just 
before this book goes to press. In the more northern 
competition, in Connecticut, the White Leghorns are 
ahead (5 English birds at that) with a record of 68 eggs 



302 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



for the month; the best that ioo pens could do in the 
dull, discouraging month of November. 

Leading the 131 pens in the Competition in the 
warmer state of Missouri, a pen of Black Orpingtons 
made, in November, a record of 101 eggs. The next 
best record was 82 eggs from a pen of Silver Wyandottes 
(the original Wyandottes). Other pens even of Leg- 
horns have made records of 3, 2, 1, and alas! zero. A 
report from Australia appearing at the same time 
showed twelve pens of White Leghorns, five pens of 
Black Orpingtons, one pen of Silver Wyandottes, and one 
pen of Barred Rocks, making records of more than 600 
eggs per pen for the first six months. The White Leg- 
horns, let the Beginner remember, are in the Mediterra- 
nean Class; the Orpingtons in the English Class, and 
the others in the American Class. The Asiatics do not 
appear as a Class, but their blood is in all but the Leg- 
horns — that is, in all these general-purpose birds. The 
showing is good for the general-purpose varieties. 



XXIV 

QUALITY IN WIRE FENCING 

Complaints of Short Life of Fencing — Users Partly Re- 
sponsible — Salt Air Deteriorating — Five Points on 
Quality — Manufacturer and Consumer — The Com- 
moner Grades — Improvements — Heavier Wires — 
Favorite Meshes. 

This matter of wire fencing and its quality, so impor- 
tant to nearly all who work with poultry, has been en- 
tirely overlooked or ignored in all the poultry books 
with which I am familiar. Indeed, the two which claim 
especially to be books of reference on all poultry topics 
have not a word to say about fencings. The United 
States government, on the contrary, has found that the 
farmers and poultry raisers of the country were being- 
fleeced to such an extent in the matter of light wire 
fencings — generally spoken of as wire net, or wire 
netting — that it has put out a special information Bul- 
letin, on "The Corrosion of Fence Wire." The Agri- 
cultural Yearbook of 1906 has this reference to the 
work, showing the reason for its inception, and the im- 
mediate outcome : — 

"Owing to the numerous complaints of farmers in re- 
gard to the rapid deterioration of the modern fence wire 
in comparison with that manufactured in former years, 
an investigation of the subject was begun, to see what 
could be done to remedy the defect. Farmers' Bulletin 
239 contains a report of this investigation, which has 
aroused the interest of manufacturers and has deter- 

303 



304 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

mined some of them to take active steps toward pro- 
ducing a fence wire more resistant to atmospheric 
corrosion." 

The Secretary of Agriculture's report for 1909 (Year- 
book) contained a full discussion of this important mat- 
ter, and it is from this source that the technical informa- 
tion given herewith is drawn. 

Wire fencing, to the poultryman, means the close- 
woven netting of wire, of which the commonest type is 
a uniform hexagonal web with heavier wires at the 
edges. This fencing comes in all widths from one foot 
to six feet, in various spacings and in various weights of 
wire, of which that known as No. 19 is the smallest that 
gives satisfaction. Therefore, this is the popular size ; 
since it is the cheapest that will "do." General testi- 
mony is to the fact that these nettings, which "might 
reasonably be expected [see Report] to last for ten or 
fifteen years," will become nearly worthless through 
rusting, in two or three years. Quite possibly the users 
of this class of goods are not discriminating enough as 
to the varying effect of varying conditions on such fenc- 
ings. It is well enough known that the "life" of such 
fencing is shorter near the seashore, or near large cities 
and manufacturing plants which give sulphurous gases 
into the air. And even in ordinary rural conditions, 
there is a considerable difference in the life of wires, clue 
to general strength of prevailing winds and the amount 
of abrasive dust which these winds carry. Where sand 
is much in the air, deterioration is hastened. But, with 
all allowance made, there still has been plenty of reason 
for complaint. 

Fencings bought of dealers who have claimed to carrv 



QUALITY IN WIRE FENCING 



305 



only the best have gone to pieces in two years. And 
the heaviest wire fencing known to me — a fence ad- 
vertised all over the United States for half a generation 
at least as the standard of quality in manufacturing — 
has rusted completely away in its lighter wires in seven 
years, in a location perhaps 20 miles from salt water. 




Wire Netting. Darker Wires Show Rust. Rusted While in the Roll 



It is a common belief, and we hear frequent testimony, 
that the wire manufactured twenty years ago or more 
resisted corrosion far better than the wires now pro- 
duced. This scarcely touches the matter as it now 
stands, since the iron wire then used has passed entirely 
out of use, in favor of the steel wire. 

Five points are noted as affecting the rapidity with 



306 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

which a given fencing will rust under normal conditions. 
These are : — 

a. The actual quality and the characteristics of the 
steel used in the manufacture. 

b. The real character and the quality of the zinc 
(spelter) used for galvanizing the wire. 

c. The evenness of the zinc covering. 

d. The weight of zinc — that is, the thickness of 
the covering. 

e. The weight or gauge of the wire itself. 

It may be thought that these are all matters for which 
the manufacturers are directly responsible. While, 
strictly speaking, this is true, in actual commerce with 
wire fencings it is yet the buyer who fixes the quality 
commonly used, because he so commonly insists on low 
price as tlie first consideration. Manufacturers are now 
making better steel, and are so alive to the necessity of 
this that the quality is likely at least to hold as at pres- 
ent, if not to improve. The quality of the zinc is a 
problem not yet fully solved. But great gains have been 
made in evenness of covering the wire, within the last 
few years. Heavier covering can also be produced. 
But, as regards these two points latest noted, the buyer 
exercises as much responsibility as the maker of the 
fencing, because only a given amount of zinc will cling 
to the wire, and a fine wire cannot be made to carry as 
much as a coarser wire. Hence, the lighter, cheaper 
fencing cannot be as well made as the heavier one. 

The consumers of fencings of this class largely de- 
mand a product with a certain price limit. It is to the 
interest of the maker and the middleman to supply that 
call which will make for them the most sales. Thus, 



QUALITY IN WIRE FENCING 



307 



the users of wire fencings, in demanding light wire and 
low prices, fix the two factors which lead to the rapid 
corrosion of the fencings. No dealer carries all weights 
and widths, since it means too much idle capital, and too 
much used space for storage. He will carry those 
which have the best demand in his locality, in fullest 
stock, though generally advising a good quality. This 
advice the suspicious buyer believes, too often, to be a 




Barley, Growing in Six by Ten Foot Frame, in Summer Yard, 
and Good Bracing are Imperative 



Stiff Netting 



trick to get more money out of him. He is likely to be 
cramped for money anyhow, perhaps carrying a mortgage. 
But, no matter what a special buyer wants, he is likely 
to have to take what the majority demand; since the 
general call influences the stock that is put in. Mr. 
A. S. Cushman, Assistant Director, Office of Public 
Roads, who had charge of the fencing investigation, 



3 o8 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



states his own belief that lighter gauge wires than No. 9 
or No. 10 should never be used for farm fencing, except 
in the case of poultry and rabbit inclosures. And 
heavier than No. 9 wire is not considered practical. 

The limit is there- 
fore narrow. Mr. 
Cushman states that 
No. 9 wire is heavy 
enough for all prac- 
tical purposes, and 
that it can be made 
satisfactorily for 
farm use in the 
"mild" steel; which, 
contrary to general 
impression, is as re- 
sistant to corrosion 
as the high-carbon, 
more springy steel, 
as well as being 
easier to handle. 
His opinion is that 
this low-carbon stock 
is really a better all- 
around material for fencing wire than the spring steel. 

The two common grades of poultry netting made by 
manufacturers differ in that one is galvanized before, 
the other after, weaving. The wire galvanized before 
weaving is usually 20-gauge stock, is considered " not 
fit to use," and should not be bought at all if one desires 
a lasting fence. It is easy enough to distinguish be- 
tween the two grades, as the fencing galvanized, as it 




Full Roll of Wire Net. Patent Drinking 
Fount 



QUALITY IN WIRE FENCING 309 

should be, after weaving, will not untwist, since its 
crossed wires are stuck together by the coating. 

Improvement in methods has, in recent years, enabled 
the makers to put on heavier coatings. But there is 
one objection to this, in that heavy coatings incline to 
make cracks at joints and bends of the web. Both the 
maker and the user having made this criticism, a custom 
arose of wiping the zinc coating to make it smooth and 
even. Thus, most of it was wiped off in some instances. 
This rather points to the conclusion that roughening at 
bends, etc., is something of a guarantee of a good coating. 

Contrasting the advantages to both producer and 
consumer in the use of light and heavy wires, the Re- 
port says : " The use of the heavier wire enables the 
manufacturer to work up a larger tonnage of metal 
without material increase in labor and other cost charges, 
and he may also expect to earn a better reputation for his 
products than he has hitherto enjoyed. The consumer 
will be repaid in the longer life of his fences and a higher 
efficiency in the objects for which the structure is designed. 
It is a mistaken idea to suppose that because the use of 
heavier wire operates to the advantage of the manufac- 
turer, the selection of light wire must necessarily operate 
to the advantage of the consumer. A light fence which 
must soon be renewed miglit possibly be considered an 
advantage to the manufacturer, if there were only one 
kind of fence available, or if he entirely controlled the 
market. But, a consumer is not likely to repeat a failure 
with a particular brand of fence ; and as the competition 
in the manufacture of wire is especially keen in this 
country, it is at once apparent that fences which rust 
rapidly work against the interest of all concerned. 



3io 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



If a wire fence needs to keep out trespassers, as is often 
the case with poultry fences, a strand of good barbed 




A Home-made Coop, Original Design. Sliding Panel, and Back Corners 
Beveled Off 



wire, set six to eight inches above the netting, but on the 
opposite side of the post, will be found quite effective. 
The longer one keeps poultry, especially if he be a 



QUALITY IN WIRE FENCING 311 

fancier, or if he be a town poultryman, or one in business 
commercially for a living from poultry, the greater be- 
comes his devotion to wire netting — good wire netting. 
Permanent fences, pen divisions, temporary runs, summer 
coops, line fences, supplementary inclosures, etc., may be 
constructed almost entirely of wire net. Probably the 
most useful type, price considered, is the four-foot, two- 
inch mesh kind. For confining small chicks, however, 
the two-foot width in one-inch mesh is the favorite. It is 
much higher in price proportionate to width, however, 
than the two-inch mesh web. The three-inch mesh goods 
are apt to be in 20-gauge wire, and thus they have two 
causes for being less firm than the popular, two-inch 
mesh grade. But these can be used for confining larger 
birds like geese and turkeys. The question of width is 
a rather troublesome one. A fence needs a bottom board, 
at least, though some dispense with the top strip. High- 
flyers demand a seven-foot fence. The six-foot width 
looks much neater, and is more shipshape generally. 
But many prefer to use a four-foot net, with a two-foot 
strip above it, because the six-foot strips are so difficult to 
handle and hang. One poultryman tells me he finds the 
best way to hang a wire fence is to drive nails in the posts 
where the top should come — at a measured height — and 
catch the upper wires on these nails ; the rest is easy, all 
except the trick of learning how to drive the staples prop- 
erly, withouttheir dropping, breaking, or going in crooked. 



XXV 

DUCKS AND GEESE 

Beginning with Ducks — A Favorable Location — Few 
Losses — Few Desirable Breeds — Pekins, Runners, 
Orpingtons — Runner Record Notable — Above 200 
Three Successive Years — Extreme Claims — Fowls 
for Feathers — Testing White Eggs — Feed — The 
New Coat — Ducks as a Specialty — Popular Breeds 
of Geese — Goose Farming — Hens as Hatchers — 
Pasturage — Beauty Breeds — Prices 

It seems to be true that many Beginners take up ducks 
and geese with diffidence and with fear, believing the 
work to be more difficult than the raising of chicks. This 
is so far from true that the losses with waterfowl are on 
the average proportionately much less after they are 
hatched than with domestic hens, turkeys, or guineas. 
Indeed, some one recently suggested that it would be 
much easier for a Beginner to start with ducks than with 
hens. With natural water privileges, the work is less, the 
growth is at least twice as rapid, and the losses far less. 
These are certainly three very strong arguments in favor 
of waterfowl. 

A favorable location for duck growing has a bit of 
land sloping toward a stream deep enough to allow 
swimming and diving delights. Such a place being 
available, one who delights in poultry has missed some 
of his privileges if he has not tried raising water fowl. 
There are many clever midgets of fancy ducks, beautiful 
for color, fascinating for sprightly grace, sympathetically 



DUCKS AND GEESE 



313 



linked to man through their apparent pleasure in living, 
and their delight in companionship. There are several 
places in this country where these, together with pheas- 
ants, and other marvelous fancy fowl can be had. I 
shall speak in detail of only a few admittedly profitable 
varieties of ducks and geese. 

According to many writers, there is only one duck — 
the imperial White Pekin, which is most regarded, not 
for its dignity, not for the egg-laying capacity especially 
in itself, but for the capacity to produce quickly a heavy 
and fat quantity of "green duck" for a waiting market. 
Hastings in 1909 gave one hundred thousand victims per 
annum as the output of the largest duck plants. A 
recent writer calls the duck a " machine-like " bird. The 
places which grind out many thousands of green ducks, 
chiefly Pekins, are quite numerous ; yet the margin 
between cost and sale price is not large, and the large 
incomes come to those who have the know how of the 
business and who make a goodly amount through small 
individual profits on very large numbers of birds. 

But because the losses are few and the chances for 
using cheap feeds very good, there is an excellent open- 
ing for a limited number of growers to grow ducks for 
the later market, for the feathers, and, in one variety, 
for the eggs ; also, in the case of Pekins, Indian Run- 
ners, and perhaps Buff Orpingtons, for the sale of fancy 
breeding stock. I do not mention Cayugas, Musco- 
veys, Rouens, etc., in this connection because, though 
Standard breeds, they are not popular and — although 
this statement may seem amazing to the Beginner — 
the popular breeds are the most profitable for the aver- 
age fancier. This because only here and there a man 



3^4 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



has the genius to become an exceptional raiser of non- 
popular birds at exceptional prices. Put it this way : 



■ 




Silo for Beets. These Form a Cheap Feed for Yarded Stock 



It is a waste of time and of capital to raise that which is 
not wanted. Does not that ring like common sense ? 

If the would-be Beginner with ducks does not want 
the Pekin, he is wise to restrict his choice to the new 



DUCKS AND GEESE 



315 



Indian Runners or the still newer Buff Orpingtons, 
both of which make their bid for favor on the strength 
of their being superior layers. Both have imbued their 
owners with sufficient confidence to lead them to enter 
their birds in the Australian laying competitions. This 
is a most extreme test. 




A Record Strain of Penciled " Walton " Indian Runners. (Photo by Mrs. 
Benigna G. Kalb) 



The Indian Runners have won first in three of these 
competitions successively, each time with official record 
of two hundred and over up to two hundred seventeen. 
The Buff Orpingtons claim one winning which I have 
not seen vouched for in print, but for which the claim 
is doubtless legitimate. There is a certain " Record 
Duck," an Indian Runner owned by one Mr. Scott of 
New Zealand, for which the enormous output of three 
hundred twenty eggs in one year is claimed, and another 
is " guaranteed " to have laid three hundred and thirty- 



316 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

nine. A claim of three hundred thirty-four eggs has 
been attached to a certain Massachusetts hen in this 
country. This and the above claims for the Indian 
Runner duck are the highest laying claims I have ever 
seen. The " Record Duck " had six descendants in 
public competition and making fine records of their 
own at last advices. Between this three hundred twenty 
egg claimed record, which no Runner breeder would 
think of looking at as possible to the average commer- 
cial worker, and the one hundred fifty egg known relia- 
ble record for these ducks kept in large flocks, there is 
a painfully wide margin, somewhere along which the 
average worker would probably land. The most fre- 
quent claim for pens of half-a-dozen or so is in the neigh- 
borhood of one hundred eighty per duck (I have known 
of averages above two hundred in this country). 
This ought to insure a profit of two dollars or over for 
each duck kept, and, as the losses are few after the easy 
trick of handling is learned, it offers a good chance to 
those who have proper facilities. This duck seems to 
have appealed especially to the women, and there are 
numbers of them in the country already who are earn- 
ing a good living for their families from these ducks 
alone. 

Not long ago, I had some correspondence with a Vir- 
ginia farmer to whom I offered a discount on a book I 
was selling. He replied that he could make all the 
motley he wanted from his Indian Runners, and that if 
he handled my book he would like to do it without 
profit for the sake of his customers. 

If one were to raise waterfowl for the feathers espe- 
cially, the white varieties like Pekins, Aylesburys, White 



DUCKS AND GEESE 31 7 

Indian Runners (when these have increased sufficiently) 
in ducks, and White Chinas or Embdens in geese are to 
be preferred. It is admitted that plucking the birds is 
not desirable when laying is expected or when the car- 
cass is soon to be marketed. This is reasonable ; for 
the feed that goes to produce feathers can hardly be ex- 
pected to produce at the same time eggs or flesh. In 
practice, it comes about that the combination method is 
pretty sure to be followed. With Pekins, however, 
which are only moderate layers, it is often feasible to 
pluck the birds at least twice in the later season. Ducks 
that are expected to lay in autumn cannot be plucked 
without injury to the laying forces. 

It is, as a rule, better to hatch ducks by means of a 
hen, a rather moist location being favorable. The nest 
may be made of soft hay, on the ground in a floorless 
building, which is so located that water cannot run 
under the walls to set everything afloat. Ten eggs are 
enough for all but the largest hens. Modern poultry- 
men test all eggs between the fifth and the tenth days. 
The eggs from the penciled or English Indian Run- 
ners, which are pearly white and almost translucent, 
may be tested on the fifth day. The infertiles are to be 
removed. These make an excellent partial food for 
small chicks. Duck eggs require twenty-eight days' in- 
cubation. The ducklings are left under the hen until 
all are hatched and dry, when they may be removed 
during the period of sunshine to a coop floored with 
boards, over which are sifted sand or dry earth and an 
inch layer of soft chaff. The coop should have an at- 
tached grass run, its inclosure at least a foot high, and it 
ought to have a secure front. The youngsters may not 



3l8 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

need any food till the next day after cooping. The hens 
should have corn and water. The ducklings need 
warmth chiefly, if the weather be cool ; if hot, they 
need shade, with a chance to get into the sun as the 
day cools. As soon as they need feed they will take it 
when offered. Bread soaked in milk is the best food to 
begin with. After this a little bran can be added, with 
a little meat and sand, and soaked cracked corn at night. 
Five per cent of meat at first is the standard amount. 
A large spoonful of sand in two quarts of feed once a 
day is a fair quantity. Very fine grit is even better 
than sand. Charcoal helps to keep them in good thrift. 
A handful occasionally is all that will be required. 
Water must be always before them in vessels such that 
they can wash their nostrils, yet not soak their bodies 
while still downy. As they grow, the little run must be 
enlarged or a fresh one provided. They need the hen 
only two weeks or so in mild weather. When feathered, 
which will be from seven weeks onward, they may be 
allowed to swim if water privileges are at hand. It is to 
be remembered that this water privilege, good as it is, 
has also its disadvantages ; since vermin commonly fol- 
low the streams and haunt the ponds. Hence, if these 
are troublesome, close yarding, with security at night, 
will be the price of success. 

When the young are ten or eleven weeks old they 
will prepare to assume a new coat. If to be sold for 
market, just before this molt is the time to dispose of 
every one that is up to average, as they are commonly 
fatter and better at this period than at any other. If 
not sold then, they must be kept on until the new coat 
matures, several weeks later. 



320 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

The Indian Runners have been known to lay at less 
than four and a half months of age. The more usual 
period is from five to five and one half months, and in 
case of late hatching they sometimes go seven months 
before laying, beginning in February, if not earlier. 

The Beginner who desires to make a specialty of ducks 
will be wise to buy a duck book and to become familiar 
with its contents before investing or attempting the work. 
Rankin's " Duck Book " is an old standard authority, 
and the present writer publishes a small book on Indian 
Runners. 

The American Standard of Perfection recognizes seven 
varieties of geese in six breeds : Embden, Toulouse, 
African, Chinese, Canadian, or wild and Egyptian. The 
decorative or fancy sort known as Sebastopol is not a 
Standard variety. The adult gander in Toulouse, Emb- 
dens, and Africans has a standard weight of twenty pounds. 
The adult Chinese and Canadian ganders weigh up to 
twelve pounds and the Egyptians to ten pounds. 

I know of no other of the lower animals so nearly 
human in many of its characteristics as the goose. The 
Beginner who learns as much as possible of the habits 
of geese before attempting goose culture is the one who 
will have best promise of success. It is quite necessary 
to know what might be called the " habits of thought." 
Geese are more stubborn than even the most stubborn 
of mankind — which seems utterly needless — and it 
often becomes necessary to use finesse and skill in order 
to lead them on in proper subjection while still permit- 
ting them to follow their own whims sufficiently to render 
them content and happy. 

Expert poultrymen are a unit in agreeing that com- 



DUCKS AND GEESE 32 1 

fort and content in fowls are what really turn the scale 
toward profit. Comfort and content necessarily include 
good handling, because they mean health ; but that 
sympathy which may be established between a handler 
and his charges seems stronger among geese than with 
any other farm stock, unless it be horses. The dog would 
be excepted, doubtless, but he does not usually count as 
" stock." In view of the fact that geese are long lived 
and that they grow (even more than other animals) to 
be confirmed in their " cranks " as they advance in age, 
it becomes of prime importance to establish at the first 
and to preserve harmonious relations with them. If, 
when young, they contract an aversion for, or a hatred 
of, any member of the family, it seems to become an in- 
stinct with them, for it can seldom be overcome, and it 
will be transmitted to all the progeny indefinitely. 

Having become acquainted with the tendencies and 
habits of the goose family and having, in addition, re- 
solved firmly to work in accordance with these and with 
sympathy toward this so nearly human animal, the Be- 
ginner is ready to acquire some geese. Just because 
geese are such creatures of habit, it is often best to be- 
gin with eggs, in order that one may form their habits 
to suit himself. Hens are best as hatchers. There may 
be need of both patience and some expense in beginning, 
because good eggs are difficult to obtain, and young stock 
may nearly fail in its first year's breeding. 

A Beginner may do well to buy a good pair or trio in 
the fall and to devote the first summer provisionally to 
making acquaintance with his stock, raising the few 
young which they may present to him and bringing the 
breeders to the proper age for good regular and reliable 



3 22 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



production. The goose produces through such an ex- 
tended period that one can afford to have her take more 
time to become well matured, but if one would be sure 
of the training of his geese he must raise them from the 
egg under his own supervision. 

It is not possible to buy geese in the spring, in many 
localities. Winter market prices are high and winter 
feed more expensive than summer feed, while production 
is limited. This means that all that are for sale will be 
sold in early autumn, if possible, although as breeders 
they cannot be sold until the sex shows itself and they 
are matured. The expert will ascertain the sex by 
physical examination, using a hand magnifier. 

Since the goose is a cheap fowl to keep, it. is better 
for those who contemplate what may be called " goose 
farming " to buy either the big Toulouse or the Embden. 
By goose farming I mean raising geese chiefly for mar- 
ket in rather large numbers. I have before me the 
figures from a goose farm in Ireland consisting of twenty 
well-watered acres on which thirty geese were kept, 
from which the gross income was nearly two thousand 
dollars. Some eggs from this farm were sold for hatch- 
ing ; but inasmuch as the income would have been 
larger had they been turned into geese at home, this need 
not count against the figures. The average output of 
eggs from this farm, which carried four varieties, was 
about forty-one per goose. This is higher than the 
general average, although the Chinese geese may lay as 
high as sixty and in rarer cases seventy or above. Tou- 
louse and Embden geese on the average probably lay 
somewhere near twenty to twenty-five under common 
handling. As all signs fail in a dry time, so all prophe- 



3 - 7 4 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



cies with regard to birds must at times be at fault. 
If the home conditions surrounding them are especially 
good, they may outdo their breed average very conspic- 
uously ; for instance, an acquaintance of my own suc- 
ceeds in getting good returns from young geese in their 
first year of breeding, and this not once only, but as a 
rule. They breed well year after year; but they have 
absolute freedom, water privilege, fine grass range, and 
the kindliest treatment, even to affection. These things 
do count, and they count doubly with geese. 




Embden Geese, about Four Months Old 

Young geese are usually mated in the fall. They 
tend to mate in pairs. The young are best so mated. 
In older stock it is customary to allow two, three, and 
sometimes four females to each male. Once the birds 
have accepted their mates, the matings are difficult to 
break; indeed, virtually impossible, without locating the 
birds out of sight and hearing of their former mates. 
It is to be kept constantly in mind that change is the 
one thing which the goose most abhors. She is a 
creature of place and association and habit, and any 
change in these upsets all her plan of life. 



DUCKS AND GEESE 325 

Goose farming and goose raising can hardly become 
a wholesale matter, though goose fattening almost 
reaches this plane at times. A good-sized hen must 
have a well-shaped nest if she is to cover six- Embden 
or Toulouse eggs properly. I find a cheese box is a 
most excellent nest container for this purpose. For the 
hen's comfort, a nest for goose eggs must be deeper 
than is permissible with other eggs. The eggs are so 
large that otherwise her weight must bear too heavily 
upon them, or she must constantly support herself partly 
by means of her feet. This would mean torture in time, 
and should not be permitted. 

It is not so very unusual for every egg to produce a 
gosling. Moist air about the eggs is needed for proper 
hatching, and some addition of warm water to the ground 
about the nest during the last three days may help the 
hatch. The shells are very strong, and the goslings 
may need assistance in getting out. They must not be 
removed from the nest with undue haste, as they are 
likely to be several days, it may be, in getting up an 
interest in the world into which they are newly come. 
When they are ready they will need only water to drink 
and a plot of short, tender grass from which to feed. In 
trying to graze they will gain the necessary strength. 
The young will thrive and grow well on bread soaked in 
milk ; but it must never be forgotten that their natural 
food is what we call " pasture," — that is, herbage which 
they may graze from the field for themselves. Where 
grazing conditions are not good, some have found good 
help in feeding cut sweet-corn stalks and leaves and 
sprouted oats. Geese are especially fond of both of 
these. 



326 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Goose farmers in a large way may feel that it is a 
waste of time to incubate the eggs under hens. In such 
case, they set the geese on the ground where they have 
laid, and take the precaution to place a coop or perhaps 
a lath rack over the sitter to ward off interference from 
the other birds. Turkey hens also are said to make 
excellent mothers for goslings — about a dozen eggs form 
a nestful for these. Even where nests are on the ground, 
some sprinkling is often done during the last two or 
three days. . This is better than helping the goslings out 
of the shell, because safer. 

When the geese are used as hatchers it is necessary 
to know their ways. The incubating goose or brooding 
goose permits no human interference and is but a vicious 
animal towards any who may be considered enemies, 
though tenderness itself to her young. She may not 
feed them, but both she and the male will exercise 
exceeding care for their protection. The hiss of the 
mother goose is a warning ; if not heeded it is quite 
likely to be followed by attack, and the unwary foe is 
rather sure to be the greatest sufferer in a battle. The 
blow of a goose's wings may leave its mark on tender 
flesh for six months or even more. 

While it is to be insisted that grass is the main food 
for geese, two light feeds of barley or oats a day are a 
part of the handling of some expert breeders, from 
January to May. They say that by this means the goose 
which would naturally lay but one "clutch," may be 
induced to lay four times as many. Lavish feeding is, 
however, not to be advised, and though meat will in- 
crease the laying, it sometimes injures the birds, which 
may then produce imperfect eggs. This simply means 



328 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

that, by stimulation, the eggs are passed through the 
" egg machine" too rapidly to attain perfection. I use 
some meat, but with great care. 

Goose farming is practiced far more in European 
countries than here. From the methods of one of these 
farms abroad I learn that the goslings are fed for a 
week, three times a day, on equal parts of oatmeal and 
barley meal moistened with milk. For the ensuing three 
weeks they receive the same mixture twice a day, after 
which they are pastured on fields eaten close by cattle 
earlier in the season so that the new grass will be short 
and tender. With this, they are fed only oats at night. 

The White Chinese and the Embdens are the beauty 
breeds among geese. To some, possibly the odd 
Sebastopols would appeal as beautiful. The popular 
sorts, however, are the large ones, the Embden and 
Toulouse breeds, to which the White Chinese may soon 
become a close third, as interest in it seems to be grow- 
ing apace. Its peculiar swanlike neck and the odd 
knob on its head give it distinctiveness, if not distinction, 
and white birds are always prime favorites, especially as 
decorations. White feathers will sell for a higher price 
than those which have color. 

A pair of geese is the unit of breeding. Once one 
has learned how to handle a pair he has all the skill 
needed for goose breeding. Speaking in general, he 
may then branch out into the Fancy, or into goose 
farming ; or he may just " raise geese " — a few for his 
own pleasure or for the decoration of the home place — 
or even for the fluffy feathers on which his wife dotes. 

It is comparatively easy to work up a trade in goose 
eerirs, as there are few in the business. A start with 



DUCKS AND GEESE 329 

good stock is the initial and the critical step. Exhibition 
at a good show is the quickest way to make a reputation. 
But the chief difficulty for a breeder with a conscience, 
is to furnish hatchable eggs. If conditions of life on his 
place are wholly favorable for the geese, the chief point 
is not to try to ship eggs from stock less than two years 
old. One who has worked up a satisfactory and grow- 
ing trade often cannot be induced to sell eggs at all, for 
he knows that even at fifty cents (a common price) to $1 
each, the eggs are worth more to turn into geese. The 
market price of a well-grown fifteen-pound goose in the 
East will be near $2. I sold some for nearly $3 each in 
191 1. In a farm paper under date of January 21, 191 1, 
the price for live geese was fourteen cents, and for 
dressed, up to fifteen cents. This would figure out $2.10 
and $2.25 for the best, alive and dressed, respectively. 

This gives reasonable ground for the poorest fancy 
geese being priced at about $5 each, while from that 
prices may grade up, possibly, to $50 a pair for winners in 
large shows. This seems to me rather low, but I suppose 
the great reason is that goose fanciers are comparatively 
few in number and thus do not force prices higher. When 
several hundreds of dollars sometimes change hands with 
a single hen or cock, it seems scarcely fair to the geese 
that the prices should be so far below this extreme. 

Just previous to this writing, I was studying the 
hatching eggs price list of a poultry supply house in 
New York City, for 191 1. The lowest price for " Stan- 
dard-bred Utility " grade was $2 per thirteen (White 
Leghorns) or $7 per hundred. In six breeds it was as 
high as $5, and in one $6 was the price asked for thir- 
teen eggs of this Utility grade. The lowest in " Exhi- 



330 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

bition Quality " was $5, and the eggs of six breeds were 
held at $10 to $12 per thirteen. This was for the eggs 
of the domestic hen. 

Pekin duck eggs, " Standard-bred Utility " grade, were 
offered at $2. 50 per twelve, and the Embden and Toulouse 
eggs of the same grade at sixty cents each or $5 per ten. 
No larger number than ten was offered, and no eggs of 
the " Exhibition Quality." However, seventy-five per 
cent fertility was guaranteed in hens' eggs, from March 
15 to June 15; claims to be made within ten days from 
date of shipment. No guarantee of fertility, either " ex- 
pressed or implied," was made in connection with water- 
fowl eggs, and no claims were to be allowed for breakage. 

Little Lines of Goose Lore 

1. Geese are the "human beings" of the fowl 
family. 

2. Geese become attached to people and places. 

3. Geese require the simplest of housing. 

4. Goose houses may be portable. 

5. Geese are easy to raise. 

6. They are strictly herbivorous. 

7. They must have access to water and good pas- 
turage. 

8. Females breed best between two and fourteen 
years ; males between the ages of two and ten. 

9. The eggs may require thirty days' incubation. 

10. Geese weigh up to twenty pounds Standard, but 
may reach forty or more. 

11. A Standard-bred flock has been known to pay at 
the rate of $90 each, all eggs being incubated. 



XXVI 

THE NATIONAL BIRD 

The Handicap in Turkey Raising — Resistant Power — 
Destroying the Sick — Lessons from Experience — 
Bronze Turkeys — Habits — Feed — An Excellent 
Ration — Bourbon Reds 

No; I don't mean that proud bird of freedom, the 
eagle. But the turkey, although not the emblem of 
freedom, is almost as insistent on it as the eagle. One 
hates to write turkey literature, in these days when 
blackhead is reported here and there all over the coun- 
try. "Blackhead " is a germ disease, largely fatal, and 
spreading from bird to bird and from flock to flock. 
This troublesome disease begins in the blind entrails 
or pouches, like long pockets, in the lower intestines. 
There is inflammation, enlargement, and thickening 
of the contents of these. These pouches, when spoken 
of together, are called " caeca." 

In connection with the change in the caeca are also 
changes in the liver. Other diseases show spots on 
the liver, but blackhead shows circular or annular 
spots, often over the whole area of the liver. The 
color may be yellowish. Yellow color in a liver always 
means something wrong. The natural color — what we 
sometimes call " liver-colored " when it appears in the 
color of dogs — verges toward a dull, dark, purplish 
red. Changes in the liver are the quickest and most 
certain evidence of blackhead. If the caeca are also in- 
volved, the diagnosis is pretty certain to be accurate. 



33- 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Whenever a new disease, a new fungus, or a new 
ravaging insect appears, the first step toward conquer- 
ing it is for the scientists at the Experiment Stations 
to study its "life history." When they know how it 
looks, how it develops, and what it does, they are not 
Yankees if they do not find some way to circumvent 
it. I remember what a matter of life and death the 
first appearance of the potato beetle was to our farmers. 
People feared that we could never again raise potatoes 
in this country. Many farmers came near starvation, 
on the newly broken lands of the frontier. It was a 
black, black outlook. But the Yankee came out atop, 
as usual. It is not for nothing that " when he under- 
takes it, he'll make the thing, and the machine tJiat 
makes it!" At the present time, the farmer calmly 
reckons how much Paris green or arsenate of lead or 
patent mixture he will need wherewith to spray his 
potato patch, buys it, applies it, and sleeps the sleep 
of the man who has done his duty, and who need not 
fear the result. 

When blackhead appeared, our scientists began to 
probe into its life history. They have found out much. 
They have named the germ and have given it a " bad 
name " in two senses. They have discovered its cousin- 
ship to the small Mephistopheles that causes white 
diarrhoea, at least one form of him. (They say there 
are two, or more.) 

The conviction is gaining ground that, no matter 
what the disease, or the victim, — whether it be man, or 
bird, or beast of the field, — -the resistance which is pres- 
ent, or which may be developed in the larger organism 
attacked by the swarming myriads of disease germs, 



THE NATIONAL BIRD 333 

is the chief hope. Prevention by disinfectants is good, 
when there is nothing better ; but resistance through 
robust condition is better. Disinfection means killing 
the germs ; there is another way of killing the ger-ms ; 
that is, to kill the animal attacked by them. It is a 
fair question, Which is cheaper, to disinfect houses, 
runs, feed, water, etc., and try to save all the sick, 
or to destroy all the sick, without loss of time, and 
depend on keeping the rest well? Many poultrymen 
are so convinced that the latter method is cheaper in 
the long run, as well as better, that they recommend 
" the ax " for every sickness in the poultry yards. If 
this is thought to be going too far, at least a " hospital," 
where every case of incipient disease may be segre- 
gated, is only the sensible protection of the rest. 

Mrs. Mollie MacClaughry Allen, an Institute lecturer 
located in New York State, and therefore within one 
of the blackhead " zones," has had experience with the 
genuine disease. At the time of the first attacks, some 
years ago (as she states), the Stations, while making 
exact diagnosis of it, had no remedies or suggestions 
to offer. At the present time, hyposulphite of soda 
is recommended as a preventive, to be given in the 
food as soon as the first symptoms appear. Mrs. Allen 
disinfected the runs as far as practicable, and destroyed 
every bird that showed the disease. She says, " It is 
never safe to keep a bird that has once been affected 
with the disease." Also, that the older and stronger 
birds were never affected. The second year, she had 
few losses, but separated, killed, and burned every 
bird that showed " the fatal yellow " in the droppings. 
By disinfection, clean feed, " and special attention to 



334 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

the selection of the breeding stock for health and 
vigor," she conquered the disease in her flock. It has 
never reappeared. 

I regard it as practically impossible to disinfect the 
ground on which turkeys range, as they roam so widely. 
But, the wider and cleaner the range, the less liable 
is the disease to get into the flocks. The rest of Mrs. 
Allen's program may be followed by any one. Her 
first rule, never to spare a bird really sick with the 
disease, is the most difficult for the average poultry 
raiser to follow. But she regards it as the key to 
success. 

There are seven varieties of turkeys recognized in 
this country, viz., the Bronze, the Narragansett, the 
White, the Black, the Buff, the Slate, and the Bourbon 
Red. The first, with possibly the last, seem to be the 
most prominent in the minds of raisers. They are the 
largest, the Bronze variety being listed in the American 
Standard of Perfection at from 20 pounds for the hen to 36 
for the adult cock ; the Bourbon Red at from 14 to 30 
pounds. The last, which is the newest, is said to be bred 
up from a once wild variety of Bourbon County, Ken- 
tucky. Most of the others have little hold on the country, 
though the Narragansett variety was once quite popu- 
lar. The Bronze turkey is raised everywhere ; and, al- 
though a small or medium bird is most often needed by 
the modern family, the call to breeders of turkeys is 
for large breeding birds. Mr. Felch has said that a 
twenty-pound female will seldom lay, and that a " torn " 
weighing over thirty pounds is worthless as a breeder. 
The big Bronze turkey is the result of a cross ; the 
parentage being a wild gobbler and a Narragansett fe- 



336 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

male. Turkeys weighing 40 pounds and upward are 
used to attract attention and interest in city shops at 
holiday times. Mr. Felch thinks 28 pounds is the heaviest 
male that should be used, and that the progeny of such 
a one will average as heavy as those of a larger torn. 
The size required in the market varies with the season. 

If the first stock or breeding birds on a place are 
raised with hens, the flocks will always be less wild ; 
but it is not advisable to make a business of raising the 
turkeys in company with the other fowls. Indeed, the 
less this is done, the better. Some of the best breeders 
inclose plots of several acres, especially for the breeding 
turkeys. A firm which used to sweep everything at 
the New York show, raised its turkeys on a small is- 
land, where they could be as near to a state of nature 
as possible ; though the young were always fed and 
watched carefully. 

Turkeys love to steal their nests, and do not tend to 
desert a nest which suits them. It is best to place 
barrels in sheltered, aloof places near the buildings. 
Turkeys like barrels for nests. These may be roofed 
with a sheet of roofing paper, for better shelter. They 
need to be blocked up so that they shall not roll or rock, 
and it is better to have the front end slightly lower, 
though the nest itself should be built level in the bottom. 
Turkeys often lay three clutches, if the earlier eggs are 
given to hens to incubate. These litters vary from eight 
or ten to more than twenty, sometimes. Late turkeys 
are not very desirable. A common hen may cover nine 
turkey eggs ; a turkey hen fifteen, which will average 
high in fertility, even though one mating serves for the 
season. The poults are very weak and tender at the 



THE NATIONAL BIRD 337 

first. They succumb easily to fatigue or wetting. For 
this reason, they are usually cooped not too far from 
the house, and a triangular pen of boards used to con- 
fine them. Sometimes, only the young are penned, the 
mother being free. She will not leave them. Green 
feed is their chief need, or at least they cannot do with- 
out it. I fail to see the value of the hard-boiled egg 
so often recommended. One good grower uses bread 
squeezed from sweet milk during the first two weeks ; 
later, curd and meal displace it, and cracked corn is 
fed at night. This is an excellent ration if the poults 
are on tender grass so that they may get all they need 
of this. Grit and charcoal are supplied by careful poul- 
trymen, and lice must be rigidly kept off. 

The latest variety to find popular favor, especially in 
the South and Southwest, is the Bourbon Red. I have 
not bred this turkey myself, but one who has, speaks of 
it thus: "I was a pessimist on the turkey question un- 
til I got hold of half a dozen Bourbon Red turks some 
years ago ; but my experience with them has been so 
satisfactory that I am a firm convert to the belief that 
they are the best turkeys for profit in the United States." 
He enlarges on this by saying that they are more intelli- 
gent, more domestic, more easily raised than the other 
varieties, and will lay (" can be depended on to lay ") 
three litters of eggs of from 15 to 18 each, in a sea- 
son. His feed is whole-wheat bread wet slightly with 
whole milk, mixed with onion tops and lettuce finely 
chopped. From 48 hours to one week this is used. 
Then they are started on hulled oats, wheat, and finally 
cracked corn. After six weeks they get their own feed 
by foraging. He allows plenty of milk to drink while 



338 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

they are small, but does not favor milk curd, "all other 
authorities to the contrary notwithstanding." 

The standard coloring of the Bourbon Red turkeys 
is chiefly deep, mahogany red, with white ; the primaries 
and secondaries and the tail being white, the neck, 
shoulders, back, and breast the deep red tone ; also the 
thighs. The shanks and toes partake of the general 
coloring, being described as "reddish pink," in the Stand- 
ard of Perfection. The highest Standard weight is 30 
pounds, but the breeder referred to above says they range 
upward to 36 pounds, in fact. It is not extremely ex- 
ceptional for birds of any breed to exceed the Standard 
weight of the breed, when that weight is comparatively 
easy to reach. If, however, the Standard has been placed 
where it is quite difficult for the average specimens to 
reach it when in good condition, the case is quite differ- 
ent. Ganders of some breeds have sometimes exceeded 
their Standard weight by at least one half, while they 
tell stories at the shows of almost double the Standard 
weight being reached by old males, well covered with 
fat. The largest known weight is never considered the 
perfect weight, in most breeds of fowls. 



XXVII 

GUINEA FOWL AND QUAIL 

Guineas and Game — Varieties — Unrecognized Varieties 
Win Their Way — Appearance and Habits of Guineas 

— Raising Guineas With Hens — Demand and Prices 

— Guineas as Protectors — Quail as Poultry — Im- 
ported Game — Quail at Connecticut Agricultural 
College, Storrs — Failures and Successes — Hatching 
Quail in Machines — Quail Our One Hope for North- 
ern Game Birds 

In my book "How to Keep Hens for Profit," I said 
(page 9), " admitting that their quality suits the mar-' 
ket, the Guinea fowl and the Indian Runner duck are 
more desirable producers of ' game ' meat than are the 
wild fowl." The reason given was that such fowls as 
can be domesticated, being then more amenable to man's 
manipulation, roll up the dollars of income faster than 
can be done with the chances of the hunt. This is true, 
despite the fact that the wild game costs nothing to 
raise. 

The shy Guinea fowl has been and is still regarded 
as more than half wild. Yet it has been raised success- 
fully by "barnyard" methods; that is, in actual con- 
finement to a similar extent to that in which common 
hens are raised. 

The "Guineas," as they are usually called, are ad- 
mitted really to be native to Guinea. The common 
" Pearl " variety is said to be identical with that of the 
Guinea Coast of Africa. It is a valuable example of a 

339 



340 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



fowl long bred, and fairly profitable with farmers and 
fanciers, not having been formally "recognized" by 
that poultry authority known as the " American Poultry 



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SMBBm 




Infra 




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White Guinea Fowl 



Association." The author of "The Perfected Poultry 
of America" says, "They have never received, so far 
as we know, sufficient recognition to have a definite 
standard prepared for them." 

The lack of this " recognition " does not seem to 
cause any loss of sleep to Guinea breeders. The impor- 



GUINEA FOWL AND QUAIL 34 1 

tant shows offer premiums for them, and the entries are 
seldom lacking at shows which I have attended. We 
find the Pearl Guinea, the White Guinea, and even the 
" any other color Guinea fowl " listed in the classes for 
premiums (even by shows professing to be held under 
American Poultry Association rules), under the same 
conditions as obtain for the " regulars." New breeds 
often have to run a gauntlet of injustice, in which a non- 
recognized breed entered must compete in a class of 
"any other variety of fowl." Here, it is pitted, not 
against its own kind, but against all other non-recognized 
breeds which may be entered. Manifestly this is no 
real competition, but its value consists in getting the birds 
into public view. The valuable white-egg, English bred 
Runner Duck, and the lovely White Indian Runner, 
have no other recognized place at the date of this writ- 
ing. Still, despite the authority of the American Poul- 
try Association, and its recognition of a green-egg 
Runner, many important shows are deliberately making 
classes for these other unrecognized varieties, because 
of a knowledge of their superior value. Some Southern 
show officials claiming entries of four or five hundred 
Runners, for the 1911-1912 season, are following this 
method. If these classes fill as expected, it will be a 
marvelous triumph for the Indian Runner ducks, as 
only such popular breeds as Rocks or Wyandottes have 
been able to count on such numbers, even at the lead- 
ing shows in the largest halls. 

The Guinea resembles the turkey more than it does 
any other of the domesticated fowls, though it is smaller 
and more stocky in build. Males are distinguished from 
females chiefly by their cry, the plumage and other 



342 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



surface characteristics being nearly alike. The Pearl 
Guinea plumage is of a shifting lavender-gray spotted 
with pearls of white. The males are slightly larger 
than the females ; the voice is more strident, and where 
young are being led, the male's careful auxiliary pro- 
tection of the female and her little ones distinguish 
him. No ordinary effort which any person aiming to 
control them can make will be successful, if the young 
seem to be in peril. One may make unnumbered efforts 
to head off the male from his family, but always he ap- 
pears between his charges and the threatening peril, to 
insure protection. Miller Purvis, in " Poultry Breeding," 
states that the Guinea seldom weighs more than three 
and one half pounds. In appearance they are more 
than twice this size. The supposed cry of " Buck- 
wheat " so common to the Guinea is credited to the 
females only. 

Though seemingly half wild when hatched by the 
Guinea female according to her own devices, the Guinea 
chicks are very dependent on the companionship of 
other fowls. With the Guinea mother they range 
widely and roost at any available height in tree top or 
on barn roof, but their love of companionship makes 
mothering by the common hen a powerful training in 
domesticated habits, as, even when weaned they may 
sit by her if she sits on a later clutch of eggs, and range 
with her and her baby brood when the latter are hatched. 
This may not be so good for the health and vigor of the 
Guineas, but it does make them far easier to handle. It 
is better to let the hen range with them as soon as they 
are strong, rather than to coop them closely. Night 
care is a necessity in many localities, but freedom is al- 



GUINEA FOWL AND QUAIL 343 

most as precious to the Guineas as to turkeys. They 
eat the same feeds as do other fowls, the range con- 
ditions suiting their habits and tendencies best. The 
Guinea hens are good layers, and often incubate twenty 
of their own eggs. Fertility is usually good, under fairly 
natural conditions, and with one or two mates for the 
male, but nests in brush piles far from the buildings are 
of course much at the mercy of marauders of every 
kind. 

I do not consider the Guinea hen to be so careless a 
mother as she is sometimes rated to be ; but fowls under 
wild or half- wild conditions are subject to all weathers 
and all predatory enemies which may haunt their ranges, 
and this means lamentable losses. Guineas may lay 
until midsummer without sitting, if the eggs are re- 
moved from the nests, but they are always jealous of 
human approach to their nests or young. The later 
sitting brings the chicks out at the most favorable 
season, when they are much more likely to come to 
maturity. 

There is a good demand for live Guineas and Guinea 
eggs in the spring, though the price is not high. In 
the poultry prints it seldom goes above one to two doHars 
per sitting. From my knowledge of farm conditions, I 
gather that there is much more cheap trade among 
farmers than among fanciers. Fanciers nearly always 
scorn such cheap trade, and often a good medium will 
be without any advertisers of Guineas. Farmers ex- 
change eggs, or charge, it may be, fifty cents for single 
sittings. I know of a locality where several farmers 
supply Guinea eggs and stock to a fancier, who may get 
twice the farm prices. Even this is not large profit 



344 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



when advertising, risk, packages, and packing, corre- 
spondence, etc., are considered. 

There is a good New York market for young Guinea 
broilers in the autumn and early winter months. This 
market is a growing one, and it is to be expected that 
the trade in Guineas and their eggs will reach a better 
condition in the near future. 

Some large hotels place Guinea flesh regularly on 
their bills of fare under its own name, but probably 
more of it is consumed as "game." Its gamy flavor 
renders it such a favorite on some farms that there are 
no surplus Guineas for sale from them. Guineas arc 
light eaters, and at all times prefer to range for their 
own chosen tidbits, in shape of weed seeds, insects, etc. 
They are not destructive, so far as I know, and are 
sometimes valuable protectors, as no intruder can visit 
any poultry yard without their raising a racket. 

To place quail among poultry is to make some people 
open their eyes questioningly, but Herbert K. Job, the 
enthusiastic state ornithologist of Connecticut, states 
his conviction that this will be the status of the quail at 
no very distant date. 

As a matter of fact, a Government Bulletin (No. 
182) put out in 1903, says: "The industry of taming 
and raising quails for aviaries and for the table is still 
very small, but if reports can be relied upon it is per- 
haps well enough established to suggest classifying the 
birds with poultry." 

It is a dozen years, I think, since I had some talk 
with a very successful squab raiser of southern New 
Jersey about quail. He was then experimenting with 
them, and was quite of the belief that success would 



GUINEA FOWL AND QUAIL 345 

crown his efforts to raise them. But I have never since 
heard from him. 

Since that time the quail of the country have been in 
sad case. Even in the case of larger animals, feeding 
has become necessary, portions of the Yellowstone 
Park having been sown to acres of alfalfa so that about 




Quail Chicks at Connecticut Agricultural College, Feeding from Hand and 
Getting Tame Enough for " Poultry." (Photo by Herbert K. Job, State 
Ornithologist) 

100 tons of hay was available. About 5000 game birds, 
besides pheasants, were imported in 1905, 2392 being 
quail from Mexico. 

These Mexican birds were imported as a direct result 
of the scarcity of native birds, to meet the great demand 
for quail of any species for propagation ; many quail 
having died in two severe winters just previous. The 



346 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

situation has since grown so much worse that the United 
States Government Report for 1910 states : " Quail have 
been reduced almost to the vanishing point in the North- 
ern states, but are still fairly plentiful in the middle belt, 
and moderately abundant in the South." English par- 
tridges (imported for the market) have been on sale in 
Chicago at $12 a dozen, and ruffed grouse at $22 a 
dozen. From the time when buffalo were killed for 
their tongues alone, and the ruffed grouse ranked in 
Massachusetts as a pest, we have come to such a pass 
that our markets demand more and more English game 
because we have not enough of our own. Early reck- 
lessness in destruction, commercial greed, and the trans- 
formation of wild into cultivated land, are named as the 
three chief reasons for present scarcity. The states 
have become so aroused that in 19 10 only Colorado, 
Tennessee, and Georgia were without restrictive laws of 
some degree. The next step is an effort at domestication. 

At Storrs Agricultural College, Connecticut, the state 
ornithologist and Professor F. H. Stoneburn, assisted 
by Joseph Martin, a young poultry student graduate, 
have joined hands in an effort to raise quail in domesti- 
cation. The college has a tract of open, half-wild hill 
land, fairly well suited to the work, and on this the 
breeders are kept and the young brooded. But the 
hatching progresses in the incubators, and a machine 
brooder is doing the material work. The three enthusi- 
astic men mentioned supply the interest and the love 
which, if anything, joined to good sense, will make the 
work a success. 

The first season began with the breeding birds wired 
in a promiscuous bunch up on the hill. For weeks nothing 



348 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

but disappointment came of it. The birds did not mate 
or nest at all freely, and the prospects of many additions 
to the some thirty breeding quail earlier procured from 
various points seemed distant or wanting. After possibly 
two months, the plan of segregating some of the breeders 
in pairs was tried. Nesting began almost at once, lay- 
ing followed in eight days, and hopes were again high. 
The rest were paired in the latter part of June, and in 
August all were reported by Mr. Job as having laid 
some four hundred eggs. 

The first eggs to be placed under incubation had evi- 
dently been looked upon by Connecticut's patron witch — 
one with a very evil eye. Their age was "various," known 
only to be too great for good hatching. Knowledge in 
handling them in the machine was at a low stage, and 
the hatch, while pretty fair, was not one to shout aloud 
over. With all care, a perfectly new brooder was 
appropriated to the quail. Almost before hope could 
plume herself, the " reliable " new brooder played false. 
It carried a paraffin tank as part of its panoply, an 
arrangement supposed to insure mild, evenly distributed 
heat The unfortunate working of it proved it to be, 
rather, evenly distributed paraffin, this distribution being 
largely on the tiny quail ! The manufacturer had over- 
filled the tank. The left-overs were seven. 

I saw the seven, in their roomy brooder, contentedly 
eating posset and maggots, and custard, and all the 
substitutes for ice cream which appeal to pampered 
quail which yet must not be pampered to death. They 
seemed rather likely to prove a credit to their assiduous 
attendants. 

The next lot held the most hopes. When I saw them 



GUINEA FOWL AND QUAIL 349 

there were towards fifty eggs in the machine — fully the 
most interesting eggs I ever saw in an incubator. The 
sharply ovoid things were so small that the machine 
looked like a big nest with a handful of eggs in the 
center. When I saw them there were twenty-two wee 
tumblers down in the nursery, and the eggs above were 
sphinxlike, though a few were pipped. As I left next 
day, my last act was to look up the young assistant and 
ask about the quail. He reported several more as having 
hatched during the night. 

Other states have tried experiments with quail — 
notably Massachusetts — with more or less success. The 
operators believe they will succeed in time, if not at 
once. In the meantime, hope is, to the full, as interest- 
ing as certainty. And all such efforts will be watched 
eagerly. With quail as a species of poultry, and giving 
fair returns for attention in breeding, hatching, and 
brooding, the country would bid fair to be rich in quail. 
For the quail are very prolific, a single hen often laying 
fifty or sixty eggs in a season. In a single case one 
has been known to lay one hundred and two eggs. 

It is thirty years or more since the first attempts were 
made to establish European quail in this country. In a 
few years several thousand had been liberated in the 
middle West, the North, and East (some also in Canada). 
They mated, nested, raised their young ; then all dis- 
appeared with the autumn migrations ! The common 
failure of the experiment with quail and the growing 
scarcity, together with " non-export restrictions " being 
passed by the Southern states for the bobwhite (" our 
Southern partridge ") have combined to lead toward the 
conviction that only the success of the efforts to make 



35° 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



quail into poultry will save the small game birds — to the 
more northern portions of the United States, at least. 

I might add just a word about the grouse and pheas- 
ant. The ruffed grouse is " our Northern partridge." 
It, too, is disappearing ; attempts at introducing foreign 
grouse have not been happily successful, and efforts to 
raise them in confinement may fairly be called failures. 




Young Quail, Two Months Old, at the Connecticut Agricultural College. 
(Courtesy of Outing Publishing Company.) Photo by Herbert K. Job 



In a certain locality in the western part of New York 
State the farmers are almost in rebellion over the law 
against killing the pheasants which are making serious 
inroads on their crops. " Somebody " liberated one, or 
some, there but a few years ago, and this is the result, 
they say. On this matter of introduction of pheasants 
the Government Report, after stating that Ringneck and 
English Ringneck have been introduced since 1880 into 



GUINEA FOWL AND QUAIL 351 

nearly every one of our states and most of the Canadian 
Provinces, continues: "For more than twenty years 
determined and painstaking efforts have been made to 
establish these pheasants in America ; and with the ex- 
ception of a few regions, such as the Willamette Valley 
in Oregon, several circumscribed localities in Washington 
and British Columbia, the Genesee Valley in New York, 
and possibly in one or two other places, it is safe to say 
that the pheasants remaining in the United States and 
Canada, not in private preserves, have cost not less than 
fifty dollars apiece. Furthermore, the few that are left 
will probably soon disappear if the stock is not replen- 
ished by fresh liberations." The European partridge, 
Hungarian partridge, German partridge, Bohemian par- 
tridge, German quail, or whatever other name the species 
may immigrate under, seems to be the one remaining 
hope, aside from the domesticating of our native quail. 
In size this partridge is between our bobwhite and our 
ruffed grouse. It is about twelve to thirteen ounces in 
weight, and is admitted to be larger and more rugged 
than the English partridge. 

It is, of course, unwise for any Beginner to attempt to 
raise such difficult subjects while still a Beginner. But 
if they interest him deeply, he may acquire all the 
knowledge needed to handle them, as a side interest, 
while still " practicing his scales " in raising the com- 
mon domestic fowls. 

There is fascination untold in discovering how industry 
after industry dovetails with others, till a complete chain 
is formed, linking together the whole world : man, the 
lower mammals, the birds, vegetable life, minerals, etc. 
Poultry raising dovetails into this group on every side. 



352 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Here are the boy, the corn, the chicken ; here, fac- 
similes of the forest songsters, the sportsman's delight, the 
cawing pests of the farmyard and field ; here, the cotton- 
tail, the wind-shielded alfalfa, the velvet bean, with its 
close-bunched nodule of nitrogen-gathering roots ; here 
the Illinois corn exhibit (high credit mark to our boys) 
and the Minnesota flax field, which may furnish, when 
its prime mission is fulfilled, a lesser help in the residues 
from the crushed seed, known to us as oil meal. The 
Great Horned Owl and the Carson Meadow Mouse may be 
as wide apart as the opposite borders of our land. Even 
from beyond the seas come some of these enemies, and all 
affect the welfare of the poultryman, through his fowls. 

Some — above — are his enemies ; some, such intimate 
friends that without them he could hardly be a poultry- 
man. They sustain life in his flocks ; they keep the 
balance between friend and foe in Nature, a destruction 
of which always means disaster to man. 

The flax, the corn, the alfalfa, the cabbage, the field peas, 
must furnish food ; the velvet bean and the Canada field 
pea turned under, enrich the ground for the bumper crops 
that make it worth the poultryman's while to raise his own 
truck and grain, at least in part. The rabbit, the meadow 
mouse, alas ! have much to their discredit ; but even the 
hawk and the owl, the crow and the jay, though destructive 
in part, can be proved even more beneficial, so that the gov- 
ernment now urges the protection of all but a few like the 
Sharp-shinned Hawk, the Cooper Hawk, and the Great 
Horned Owl; while the family cat is considered a greater 
sinner than " all the native natural enemies combined." 

While the genuine Beginner is not likely enough to 
screw his courage so high as to need warning to let 



GUINEA FOWL AND QUAIL 



353 




This Hawk Feeds Chiefly on Wild Birds and Poultry. Efficiency Demands 
that it Be Kept in Check 



2A 



154 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



ostriches alone, at least till he can creep, he will be 
interested in the fact that ostrich farming is a part of 
America's diversified bird culture. While perhaps not 
within the limits of true poultry because not fully domes- 
ticated, the ostriches certainly rank high as economic 
birds, and America has been busy ostrich farming — in 
spots — for about thirty years. Twenty-nine ostrich 
farms are now reported in this country, carrying above 
five thousand ostriches. The above ten million fowls 
reported in the Pacific Division include one thousand 
eighty-two ostriches on ten California farms. One farm 
in Arkansas reports one hundred forty-seven ostriches. 
American alfalfa helps make the limits of ostrich 
farming here ; they can be grown in any of our more 
Southern states, where green feed is abundant the year 
around, though certain localities are especially favorable. 
A full-grown ostrich is half as heavy as a cow, and the 
man who would pluck one literally has his hands full. 
The young produce of 21 pairs, early in the history of 
ostrich farming in America, was sold for $30,000, all 
within two years. The eggs are five inches in diameter 
and seven inches long, and special incubators are built to 
hold about 35 or 40 eggs. Between these huge sealed 
shells of nutriment and the tiny quail eggs, the contrast 
is so great that the mind can hardly take in the fact that 
both are birds' eggs, and that both birds are amenable to 
handling by man and to artificial rearing. The cave man 
began domesticating animals, and his descendants are at 
it yet. The group of five-months-old ostriches pictured 
might be taken for the stagiest of skirt dancers, so bare 
are their legs and so fluffy their petticoats, so light and 
dainty their balance and so "low-necked" their attire. 



XXVIII 

DRAWING AND DISMEMBERING POULTRY 

Government Investigation of Shipping Losses — Loss Due 
to Methods of Killing and Handling — Local Market- 
ing — Partial Dissection — Dismembering a Fowl for 
Table Use — A Quicker Method — Learning to Carve 
— Part Dissection of Birds that Die — Results of 
Overstimulation. 

It is of the greatest value to the Beginner to know where 
he can get brief, conservative, reliable, and sharply prac- 
tical informative booklets on special topics. Such are the 
bulletins of the United States Agricultural Department. 
As a foundation for the wider knowledge and the dis- 
cussion which brings out ideas, " secrets," etc., from 
many hundreds of people, through books and periodicals, 
there is nothing else so safe as these Government Bulle- 
tins, or primers. 

In the matter of preparing poultry for market, there 
is an especially valuable lot of government literature. 
The almost incredible losses and wastes, occurring in con- 
nection with moving the enormous quantities of poultry 
meat produced from the growers to the consumers, 
roused the authorities to keen investigation into causes. 
Having found, through first-hand research work, the 
causes, it prepared bulletins, lectures, and lantern-slides 
as mediums to pass this highly valuable information on to 
the producers and shippers, who stood in such crying need 
of it. One would not for a minute intimate that all the 
blame falls on the producers. But a knowledge of the 

355 



356 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

best methods, on the part of the producer, eliminates, 
from the very start, many of the worst evils. 

During " Farmers' Week " at Cornell University, early 
in 1 9 10, I saw the slides shown and heard the lecture 
given by the government representative, sent especially 
for this duty. The value of such aid is almost inesti- 
mable. The government's " Just-How Series," so to 
speak, is invaluable to all who " want to know." The 
states stand between the government and their own pro- 
ducers, ready to hand down every good thing, and con- 
tinually experimenting and searching on their own 
account and for the benefit of the people. At Syracuse, 
a few months after the lantern lecture at Cornell, I saw 
Cornell's Professor of Poultry Husbandry, himself, demon- 
strating these points for the benefit of many hundreds 
of interested farmers and poultry people, at the crowded 
State Fair. All through the state (and other states as 
well) this hard-won knowledge is passed on : at the poultry 
shows ; at the Fairs ; at institutes ; and in the Short 
Courses, to eager young students. The man who does 
not hunt out the knowledge he needs in these times, is 
too slow and blind for the times. For the knowledge is 
out, fairly hunting him, all the time! 

To be brief, the causes of loss to find out which re- 
search work was set on foot, in connection with poultry 
marketing, were discovered to lie almost wholly in the 
methods of killing and the careless handling poultry 
received at that time, and while being prepared for mar- 
ket. Demonstrations were made, showing how correct 
methods of killing, handling, and shipping eliminate the 
waste losses. I shall not repeat the methods, as any one 
can get them from the Agricultural Department at 



DRAWING AND DISMEMBERING POULTRY 357 

Washington. (Many of the Bulletins are free; some 
have a small price attached. A list, with details, can be 
had upon application.) I will say only that the great 
improvement turns almost wholly on quick and thorough 
bleeding, and on preserving the skin from breaking, and 
the flesh from bruising. " Just how " to make every 
motion is taught. 

In marketing poultry products locally, and to private 
custom, it is necessary to follow the methods of the mar- 
ket poulterer and the large handler only in essentials. 
The essentials are good bleeding, clean work, with skin 
as little broken as possible, and, in many localities, 
"drawing" the carcass. For the home table, there is 
still one process which may be looked upon as modified 
dissection. Partial dissection is often the one reliable 
aid toward the avoidance of " repeats " in the matter of 
mistakes in feeding, or in the case of diseases of various 
kinds. Scalding the fowl is often permissible, and quick 
severing of the head with an ax is the easy manner of 
killing. Inasmuch, however, as fowls are most commonly 
sold with the heads on, it is customary with those who 
sell drawn birds, minus the heads, to figure in the weight 
of the heads, unless the price asked has allowed for this 
loss of weight. 

In all towns, the majority of those house mistresses 
who are free buyers are likely not to know how to pre- 
pare undrawn fowl for the table. If the servant be 
equally ignorant, the situation may appear even tragic 
to those most deeply concerned. It will, in most cases, 
probably be necessary to draw the fowls for private 
custom, on this account. The operation takes little time, 
after one has attained skill through frequent practice. 



358 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



But no cook book, or other repository of housekeeping 
wisdom within my knowledge, gives the method of 
procedure. 




Drawing and Dismembering a Fowl: A. The First Knife Stroke at Rear; 
B. Removing Food Tube and Windpipe ; C. the Fingers strongly Draw- 
ing Abdominal Contents Outward; D. Leg Joint Cut Asunder; E. 
Lengthwise Cut Down Back 

The first operation, always, is to slit the outer skin 
(only) lengthwise, over the food pouch known as the 



DRAWING AND DISMEMBERING POULTRY 359 

crop. By careful working, with thumb and ringers, the 
two skins are separated, thus loosening the crop from 
the outer skin. It is then cut free across the food tract 
at its lower end. Some care is necessary, in order that 
the juices shall notescape, in a troublesome dribble. (Some 
are so particular that, when the fowl is to be roasted, 
they remove the crop by slipping it through under the 
main skin at the upper part of the neck, without making 
any slit in the outer skin. For cooking, the fowl is 
stuffed by reversing this process, thus filling the space 
left vacant by the missing crop. 

The crop being freed, and the legs split off from the 
body, the bird is now grasped, in one method, by the 
skin between the vent and the tail, using the thumb and 
forefinger of the left hand. The carcass is best held on 
end, the breast resting on the table. A square is cut 
about the vent, the slits being made across the raised 
bits of skin, with care not to cut too deep. If the bird 
is in good condition, the skin is underlaid with a layer 
of fat, which prevents cutting the intestine. Careful 
cutting through this fat lays the abdominal contents 
partially open. If the opening is not large enough to 
work through, extended slits, toward the thigh, will give 
more room. The three long fingers of the right hand, 
slightly spread, are now carefully but strongly thrust up 
between the abdominal contents and the breastbone. 
They will reach beyond the intestinal coil, drop their tips 
behind it to the back bone, and with a strong, steady 
pull, draw out all the abdominal contents but the heart, 
lungs, and kidneys. The knife may be needed to free 
the membranes at the outer end. The heart and lungs 
may be removed separately, the last being bedded some- 



360 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY ' 

what between the ribs at the backbone, far up. This is 
the whole operation of " drawing." It is easily learned, 
the chief point being the use of care not to cut the en- 
trails. The liver is now cut free from the green gall 
bag, the gizzard split at the thick end and laid open. A 
few trials are the only thing to teach one not to cut too 
deep ; that is, so deep as to lay open the rough sac of 
tough, inner membrane containing the waste. This should 
come away entire, with its partly digested contents. 
Scraping of the inner surface of the gizzard and of the 
outer skin of the fowl make the meat ready for careful 
washing. Some cooks commit the error of soaking the 
drawn and dismembered fowl for several hours. Nothing 
could more surely impair its flavor. It should be washed 
and scraped as rapidly as possible, drained, covered, and 
set away dry till ready for cooking. 

In another method of drawing, after the crop has 
been removed, a sharp knife is drawn the length of the 
back, just at one side the spinal column, the cut being 
made through the bones only, which are thin at this 
point, and, in young fowls, soft. A few trials will show 
how deep to cut. The carcass can then be laid open 
the full length, as a book is opened, and the worker can 
see to remove all the contents of the body cavity. When 
sufficient skill is attained, this is the quickest method 
known, I believe. 

For the Head of the Table who would learn to carve 
skillfully and with ease, there is no other aid equal to 
practice in disjointing an uncooked fowl. A young bird 
is better for the first practice work, because all the joints 
and cartilages are soft, and cut, as the saying goes, 
" like cheese." There is a gristly point in each joint, 




A. Egg Duct, Egg Cluster (extreme right), and Gizzard. Flanking Gizzard, 
Lumps of Yellow Fat which Surrounded It. B. Slash, Forward of Breast 
Bone ; at Left, Thigh Slashed apart from Trunk Portion. C. Exact Posi- 
tion of Knife in the Difficult Severing of Breast Portion from Back 



362 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

which cleverness and skill can strike almost unerringly. 
The correct position for the knife, as well as the point 
of cutting, must be known. At the end of the breastbone 
is a weak point for cross-sectioning. A little below the 
middle of the back is a vital point where division is easy, 
by a backward pull of each end, or even of the lower 
end if a fork is struck in it strongly. To detach the 
collar bone is perhaps the most difficult part of the 
operation, but a cut at just the right angle will do it. 
The neck joints are twisted off, or cut between the 
vertebrae, after the skin and flesh have had a circular, 
clean cut. A sharp, narrow, rather short, pointed kitchen 
knife does good work. 

It is rather necessary for any grower who would be 
really independent, to learn how to do the cutting at the 
vent that will give access to the abdominal cavity con- 
tents. Often, one look at the interior of the cavity will 
solve problems which have vexed the soul of the poultry- 
man for weeks or months. 

Inflammations, ovarian difficulties, tumors, worms, 
caecal affections, fistulas ; in fact, nearly all but head 
and throat troubles, will be diagnosed by a good look at 
the abdominal contents. The intestines and the egg 
organs are packed so closely together that difficulty with 
one may soon mean difficulty with the other. And, 
when man is continually stimulating the egg organs to 
added activity, it must be expected that breakdowns 
from overstrain and overwork will occur. The egg 
duct may be torn ; eggs may escape into the abdomen; 
cysts will form around foreign bodies, and these will 
crowd and possibly cause stoppage of the waste tract. 
The chief reason for the practical dissection recommended 



DRAWING AND DISMEMBERING POULTRY 363 

is to make it possible so to connect symptoms with actual 
causes that the worker can avoid the train of circum- 
stance which brought about the wreck of his hopes, and 
the loss of his bird. Practice in full dissection, after the 
surgeon's processes, will not be necessary to most poultry- 
men, though it is sometimes taught, at least in part, at 
the poultry schools. In serious cases, where microscopic 
work is necessary, the State Experiment Station is a 
safe helper and usually a willing one. 



XXIX 

ADVERTISING FANCY STOCK 

Taking the Fever at Shows — Care to Get Good Stock — 
The Beginner's Education in Quality — "Utility" — 
Classified Advertising best for Beginner — A Great 
Blunder — Sample Advertisements, Good and Bad — 
The Worst Error — Unconvincing Advertising — 
Throwing away Money — Advertising with Dignity 
— The "Run" of Prices for Birds — Prices on Exhi- 
bition Stock 

Learning to raise first-class chicks, to handle stock for 
its comfort and the owner's profit, to produce fertile eggs 
and to gain a fair idea of birds, may well give a Beginner 
enough to keep his mind and hands busy for several 
seasons. Strictly speaking, no one has any business 
with fancy stock as a good material proposition until he 
has mastered the mechanical part of poultry raising and 
handling. 

Yet, it often comes about that the Beginner gets his 
first impulse toward poultry raising at a great exhibition. 
In such case he will hardly be satisfied, even at the first, 
with anything less than stock which is " good " from the 
Standard point of view. To get anything really high 
grade, he must usually have some money to invest, un- 
less he is lucky enough to have friends who will give 
him a start. Many poultrymen, however, are on the 
lookout for some one with plenty of range who will raise 
birds for them, the owner often furnishing all eggs and 
taking what he chooses of the stock (according to the 

364 




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366 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

agreement made) at a set price, which is not very high. 
While not the best way, this is a feasible way in which a 
man with a farm but without spare capital can get a 
start with really high-class stock. Men who know their 
business say that they would rather have a fair bird from 
good stock than one of exceptionally good appearance 
which had not good blood lines behind it. It is on these 
blood lines that the skilled fancier relies to get him the 
accumulative forces which will insure him continuancy 
in producing the best. This continuancy is the one as- 
set of greatest value to the fancier. 

All other statements notwithstanding, it is not always 
safe to rely on getting good stock from any fancier 
merely because he ranks as " a good breeder." " Buy 
of a man who has a reputation for having good stock 
and you are safe," is very common advice to the novice ; 
but this is far from being the real story. There are 
men in the country with the reputation of breeding good 
stock going back twenty-five years or more, some of 
them judges, who are rated by those who know them 
best as "good fellows to keep watch of." Some who 
have the widest reputation as winners in best shows, and 
some who crow loudest in the public prints, will fleece 
every man who does not know what he wants. This, of 
course, usually means the Beginner. I could mention 
half a dozen whose advertisements are known from the 
Atlantic to the Pacific who are not trusted by the 
breeders at large who know them. They have good 
stock, but not all their stock is good, nor are their busi- 
ness methods above suspicion. Another point is that 
the Beginner, not having been educated up to the price 
which the best stock brings, asks for the best at a price 



ADVERTISING FANCY STOCK 367 

suited only to the utility grade, and the expert fancier 
gets rather in the habit of regarding him as " an inno- 
cent " who expects always more than any one of experi- 
ence would or could give him for his money. 

This is not by any means to say that all fanciers with 
reputations are crooked. I know men in the fancy who 
are most painfully honest. The statements above are 
necessary in order to forewarn the Beginner not to bank 
alone on a reputation for having good stock. Let him 
deal with those whom he or his friends know to have both 
good stock and good will and integrity. 

There is still another side to this, which is, to speak 
frankly, that the Beginner himself, when he first begins 
to raise fancy stock for sale, is quite as likely as any 
one to prey upon the public. This, not because he is 
willfully dishonest, but simply because he is a Beginner. 
There are people who sell stock without ever having 
seen the Standard of Perfection, the fanciers' law of 
breeding. They may think that their stock is of a good 
strain, but they do not know the distinction between 
the middle-grade specimen and the first-class one. The 
higher the grade, the smaller the variation which adds 
ten or fifteen or twenty-five or fifty dollars in value. In 
large shows, it often takes an exceedingly good judge to 
see much difference between the first and the sixth prize 
bird, in what is called a " hot class "; that is, a class in 
which the prize is hotly contested. The Standard of 
Perfection, toward whose demands each fancier must 
breed his stock, contains working rules for constant use. 
It is, in effect, the judges' and fanciers' pocket reference 
book, to be consulted on every occasion of difficulty or 
uncertainty. 



3 68 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Any one who does not know the real value of his in- 
dividual birds may always advertise birds of Utility 
Standard-bred grade and do it honestly, as the phrase 
" Utility Standard-bred " is translated at present. The 
term " Utility " once meant very superior laying stock 

that was also Stand- 
ard-bred, but which 
did not necessarily 
have the best Stand- 
ard points. As 
breeders express it, 
not "up" in fancy 
points ; but the word 
"Utility," being sus- 
ceptible of various 
translations and being 
thus an easy word to 
juggle with, has come 
to mean very little 







Fancy Slock Acquiring Hardines 
A "Utility " Quality 



more than birds bred 
toward the Standard, 
but not meeting exhi- 
bition requirements. These may or may not be excep- 
tionally good layers. They will, at least, have a uni- 
formity lacking in birds not bred to the Standard, and 
probably a capability to produce some birds much better 
than themselves in Standard requirements. The uni- 
formity will tend to make them superior market stock, 
and they may be quite as good layers as the average of 
their breed, or even better. A few breeders offer high- 
grade Utility stock and explain how the}' have bred very 
carefully for exceptional laying qualifications. These 



ADVERTISING FANCY STOCK 



369 



have as good a right to exceptional prices as has the 
fancier, pure and simple, and such stock is in strong 
demand, while the supply is restricted. 











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At Five Weeks Thrifty Leghorn Chicks are Beautifully Fledged. The Winter 
Layer of High Priced Eggs must Feather Well. (Cornell Photo.) 

In considering matters pertaining to advertising, an 
early question to arise is whether to use the cheapest or 
the highest-priced mediums. This settled, the question 
as to comparative values of " classified " or " display " 
advertising at once presents itself. The "classified" 
are usually brief advertisements set uniformly without 
display type except a leading word or two, under special 
headings, which sometimes serve as an index, being 
thus arranged in alphabetical order. Display advertis- 
ing may occupy from half-an-inch to two or more pages 
and make use of various sizes of type, of spacing, of 
set-off lines around about all cuts to attract special at- 



370 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

tention. A good " classified " ad. of a few lines will 
sell all that a small place has to offer, if kept before its 
public in one or two good mediums continuously. It 
will sell very little or nothing, unless it appears regu- 
larly, offers something worth while, and tells the buying 
public why the goods offered are better than something 
competitors may offer. 

One of the greatest blunders the Beginner with 
advertising makes is in thinking that a "transient" ad- 
vertisement is worth anything. Unless it offers com- 
mandingly good special bargains in a very convincing 
way, it is only a catchall for good money. To be sure 
it costs little ; as a rule it is worth less. 

I do not by any means intend to decry the " classi- 
fied " advertisement. It proves a good selling medium 
for hundreds of small breeders every selling season, and 
even the large breeder does not always disdain it. I 
have in mind one breeder carrying a single breed for 
years, who claims to be its leading breeder (and who 
does thousands of dollars' worth of business, I have no 
doubt, each year), yet I do not recall having seen a dis- 
play ad. over his name at any time. He uses the " clas- 
sified " columns of all the better poultry papers, and 
apparently these sell his immense stock. He is an 
exception, but he proves the value of a classified ad- 
vertisement well used. I dare to say that far less 
money is " sunk " in classified advertisements than in 
the display columns. It is a strange bit of psychology 
that the average small advertiser will "bite " at so much 
a word, when he would not advertise at all at so much 
a line, yet the service may cost him very nearly the 
same in the two cases. That this class of advertising 



ADVERTISING FANCY STOCK 371 

is a good thing for the publications is presumptively 
proved by the fact that even the high-grade magazines 
have adopted it. Some publishers get good patronage 
in small classified offerings when they could not get an 
opening for display advertising. 

The matter of adapting the advertising space to the 
amount of stock to be sold is a vital one to the Begin- 
ner, who, unless his advertising pays, may be in a sad 
case. He is almost sure, however, to need education in 
percentages ; that is, he must not be horrified to learn 
that from 20 to 40 per cent of the value of the goods 
sold must go to advertising expenses. Without a good 
follow-up system, even good advertising may mean only 
one sale out of seven inquiries. This means much un- 
necessary work for the returns, too. 

A few sample advertisements will show what I mean 
by good advertising more clearly than any other words 
can do. These are from current periodicals with change 
of names, etc., sufficient to disguise them. " 17000 White 
Wyandottes, the largest and best flock in the world. See 
large advertisement. John Smith, Oberlin, Ohio." This 
advertisement has only two points of value, viz. : to call 
attention to the large size of the plant and to the large 
advertisement ; yet one has to look through pages of ad- 
vertisements to find the large one, and any one who is 
familiar with general advertising knows that the single, 
half-direct statement which this short ad. makes is not 
true — just " buncombe." 

"Home Poultry Plant, John M. Smythe, Poulterer, 
Town Hall, Texas. White Dorkings, Langshans, White 
Orpingtons, and Rose-Comb Black Minorcas, and some 
fine cockerels for sale. Eggs in season. Satisfaction 



372 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

guaranteed." What can you, the Beginner, say is 
wrong with this advertisement ? Doesn't it give the 
name, breed, location, the name of the plant and a 
guarantee? Yes, all of these, but the guarantee is the 
only thing that every other breeder of the same varieties 
may not also be giving. " Fine cockerels " are offered. 
Oh, yes, but the word "fine" can be translated in twenty 
different ways by twenty different persons. The owner 
thinks them fine and guarantees them and his eggs in a 
general way, but he gives no prices, which means at 
least seven letters for him to write where one might 
have done, if his advertisement draws attention at all. 
Such an advertisement is not definite enough, has no 
distinctiveness ; but, it fills five lines of page space. 

Now see what another advertiser has gotten into six 
lines : "Trap-nested Orono Columbian Wyandottes, the 
big kind. Bred ten years for size and heavy laying. 
Raised on free range, housed in open-front houses. No 
healthier or better layers known. Eggs, ioo, $5 ; 50, 
$3. Free circulars. Asahel Jones, Hallmark, Indiana.' 

It must be admitted that what the advertiser says and 
what the buyer can also read between the lines are the 
latter's only guides to the actual facts. Here, it is shown 
between the lines that the advertiser knows the modern 
methods of getting stock that is productive, well grown, 
healthy and improving and that will give hatchable eggs. 
The rest, perhaps, the buyer must take on trust, but the 
seller refers to a well-known source of good stock as the 
source of his own, and he states that he trap nests, selects, 
works for vigorous health both in raising and in winter 
housing ; and, he does not make the mistake of charging 
for his circulars. Moreover, his prices are very attrac- 



37 j i in BEGINNER IN nui iky 

the. A certain "book" offered the public uses half its 
pages in lauding the stock o( the writer of it, who in 
addition asks two stamps for his price list. Exploiting 
the public, this, with a vengeance! 

I take it for granted that the Beginner is keen to 
know the very worst mistake an advertiser can make. 
In my view, it is to present himself to a stranger with a 
palpable untruth on his lips. Many experts consider a 
convincing argument to be the acme of good advertising. 
It seems to me that the advertiser who makes a state- 
ment false on the face thrusts this argument full into the 
reader's mouth: "If this man lies in getting mv atten- 
tion and telling me about his goods, would I not be an 
idiot to believe that he will be honest when he fills his 
orders? - ' 

The public advertising mediums themselves do not al- 
ways set the best o\ examples in this respect. Hardly one 
of them bidding for patronage but will insist that, no mat- 
ter how many times an advertiser has been disappointed, 
it will make good for him. A few periodicals have offered 
to repeat advertisements free if their claim prove untrue, 
which is in effect selling at half price, advertising which 
may or may not prove oi value. 

Beside the picture of a man who seems to be trying 
t>> look two ways at once appears, in a modern advertise- 
ment, a voucher for the value oi a certain guide to the 
poultrvman, — "With more sound, practical information 
in it on the tilings you want to know than any other 
book published." All the problems are solved, all the 
secrets revealed, in this marvelous book — yet just under 
my eye lie two similar books, one sold through several 
editions at live dollars per copy, each oi them claiming 



ADVERTISING FANCY STOCK 375 

to inculcate all necessary knowledge into the would-be 
learner and each as positive in its statements as the 
English language permits. Each claims, moreover, to 
show the only correct method of handling domestic fowls 
for profit, and each is the exact opposite of the other in the 
most u essential" points noted. 

A few pages over, in the same periodical, I turn to a 
big incubator advertisement telling how a customer won 
the prize with the machine there offered, " against all 
other machines," by hatching every egg to the entire 
capacity of her machine. This incubator is accompanied 
by a brooder guaranteed to raise more healthy chicks 
"than any other brooder made." The whole shored up 
by an iron-clad guarantee to refund money after a three 
months' test if the machines are not " exactly as repre- 
sented " in the advertisement. 

Just beyond this is the offer of machines from a com- 
pany claiming " the largest egg farm and chick-hatch- 
ing plant in the world." It offers a "perfect equip- 
ment." Its hatcher will outhatch any other incubator 
(see ante) and its brooder is the best substitute ever de- 
vised for Nature's method of chick raising. 

A little farther on a company says proudly, "We are 
the originator of a flannel to lay on the chicks' backs." 
No need, perhaps, to add that this company's brooder 
" stands above all in correct brooding princi/W.y." 

The next to demand extra attention contains every 
one of the good features recommended by government 
experts for a first-class machine and "is the only incu- 
bator that does contain them all." This advertisement is 
accompanied by # a quotation in duplicate of the six re- 
quirements named. This is a rather good advertisement 



376 Tin-: mv.iwiR i\ i-ori.TRv 

and as reasonable in its statements as one of experience 
won lil expect an advertisement to be —yet it says that 
failure and disappointment are impossible, and that it 
" makes good every claim in every hatch," while its 
hock gives " the whole truth on the incubator question." 

Over the leaf is another whose manufacturer " expects 
to revolutionize the industry " because he has discovered 
a new insulating material. He has never seen or heard 
of any other incubator that could even rival his own. 

The next one is guaranteed as the best hatcher on 
the market at any price, ami affirms that the buyer of it 
takes no chances. 

Soon comes another manufacturer who saws that he 
will let his machine stand on its record. Marvelous, of 
course ! 

Still another has a regulator that never has to be 
touched. "The most perfect ever invented" and is the 
only machine " that's right." 

The next one " hatches ami broods perfectly." The 
next guarantees perfect workmanship, perfect material, 
and perfect operation. 

The next is "without a doubt the most careful incu- 
bator made." It is "///<• only machine that is scientifi- 
cally correct." 

The next that comes to my eve has a new phrase 
which recalls the framers of our Constitution — "They 
hatch alike in the hands oi women, beginners, and ex- 
perts." Surely this is the phrase to meet our need in 
this chapter! They are "the highest-grade incubators 
built anvwhere by am body," and one needs no previous 
experience to operate them successfully. 

If the Beginner should wade through the slush of 




— a 



.s at 






378 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

words, words, words, that fill so many pages of advertis- 
ing in his favorite poultry papers, he might, with suf- 
ficient study, work out a principle of advertising that 
would form a working model for himself. No one can 
deny that the advertiser who must meet so much com- 
petition must make his advertisements tell — what they 
may " tell " is another story. 

Careful scanning of the spaces of these big advertis- 
ers will show that they fall into two main classes, viz.: 
(a) those who try to prove themselves better than all 
others and spend much space drawing invidious com- 
parisons ; (b) those who utilize all their space in telling 
the good points of their machines and show why they 
are good. These latter advertisements are usually far 
more dignified than the others and in the long run more 
convincing. I notice, too, that the manufacturers of 
machines known to be the leaders are not, as a rule, too 
free with their guarantees. 

As an example of what a machine that is "perfec- 
tion " when it meets the buyer can do for his faith later, 
I might tell the brief story of a recent Beginner. This 
Beginner sought advice from me, but admitted that he 
was favorably impressed with the machines offered by a 
certain city department store. They were beautifully 
described, fully guaranteed. The machine was to be 
the best incubator the buyer ever saw or even heard of, 
and guaranteed to hatch every Qgg that was both fresh 
and fertile, and also by some peculiar power to bring 
stronger chicks than any other incubator could do. 
Despite my positive advice to let department store in- 
cubators strictly alone, my get-rich-quick Beginner 
bought this attractive machine. Before the first hatch 



ADVERTISING FANCY STOCK 379 

was out, the unseasoned wood of which it was built had 
shrunk until a finger could be laid in the cracks. 

This matter of advertising is an exceedingly important 
one for the Beginner, because the average person may 
throw away money in advertising far faster than he can 
make it through poultry raising. To compose an ad- 
vertisement with such brevity that it does not tell its 
story is to throw away all money expended on it. A 
buyer must be spoken to very clearly, and courteously, 
if positively, and he must be offered some kind of a lure. 
This does not mean deceit, but it does mean that the 
advertiser must look into the buyer's mind ; must see 
mentally what the buyer wants; and must offer just 
that if he has it, in terms which make it attractive. 

Imported stock, heavy laying strains, anything, in 
fact, that is difficult to get, is a lure to the buyer. If the 
Beginner has begun so that he has it, he is to be con- 
gratulated, even though he has had to pay good prices, 
for he can advertise it with a clear conscience, with con- 
fidence and with dignity, and he need not fear to speak 
too strongly provided that he keep within the bounds of 
truth and of dignity. Dignity, the dignity of self-re- 
spect, is not " offishness " ; that is a bar to the buyer. 
" Friendliness " is one of the best words for the Begin- 
ner who would make for himself a place in the Fancy. 

Low prices are a lure, chiefly to other Beginners ; yet 
Beginners must charge comparatively low prices, until 
they have proved the value of their goods in competi- 
tion. An expert breeder, is likely to cast aside an ad- 
vertisement that puts prices too low, because he knows 
that the average Beginner, not knowing well even the 
good points of the stock he sells, does not know how to 



380 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

select birds. Exhibition stock prices are always " a 
matter of correspondence." Fancy values are in a 
sense fictitious, and the character of the shows, the 
strength of the competition, the number of buyers 
present, etc., all have their effect on prices ; also the 
number of birds equally good in the breeder's stock at 
home. The bird priced at $500 in the catalogue may 
not get any valued place under the Judge. " Prohibi- 
tive " prices in the Show Catalogues save the specimen 
to its owner, while impressing the public. 

In most breeds, there is a certain " run " of prices, a 
knowledge of which will make fanciers say a certain bird 
is " worth-" about so much. Birds of small breeds have 
lower prices than larger ones, as a rule ; breeds having 
a " boom " on, command more exceptional prices than 
others, even as exceptional birds always do. Two and 
three dollars are prices freely asked for " utility stock." 
" Fair breeders " may bring from three to five dollars, 
stock rating as strictly high-class breeders anywhere 
from ten to fifty dollars, this depending on the buyer's 
needs and purse. Exhibition birds may bring any price 
upon which the buyer and seller may agree, up to hun- 
dreds of dollars. These are only rough statements, and 
the law of supply and demand is not a dead letter, even 
in the exhibition room. The winner of the " blue " in a 
popular breed may have the "supply," but, if only one 
buyer demands the bird, the price may fall far below that 
possible when many buyers compete for the blue-ribbon 
specimen. 



XXX 

SHIPPING TO NEW YORK 

Requirements of New York Market — The Perfect 
Product — Producers' " Price Current " — Details of 
Dressing — Details of Packing — Dry Picked Stock 
not always Highest in Price — Shipping Details — 
Where many Fail — Orange Boxes for Eggs Faulty 
— The Standard Package Helps Sales — Basic Prin- 
ciples of Shipping Eggs — Important Market Sea- 
sons — Dealers Buying Outright 

The requirements of the various large cities differ 
quite materially in some points. But, inasmuch as more 
people probably ship to New York than to any other 
city, I give New York methods and requirements. These 
will prove a good basis for any one who wants to ship to 
any city, as they will give an idea of the points necessary 
to cover. The one seeking information can then write 
to a commission man in the city of his choice, and will 
receive, from good firms, all the help they can give him. 
This is not, however, the best way to prepare for ship- 
ments ; because, a visit to the commission district in the 
city to which he desires to ship would be in the nature of 
a revelation to any would-be shipper, and would save him 
from the possibility of making mistakes at points concern- 
ing which he might never think of making inquiry or of 
suspecting difficulty. When such a visit cannot be made, 
such information as this chapter contains may save from 
many pitfalls, and may turn a shipment from loss to 
profit, in many an instance. 

381 



38^ 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



The Beginner in shipping needs to get firmly fixed in 
his mind first of all that condition and appearance count 
against everything else, in a city market. The finest of 
goods in quality are likely to go at a loss to the shipper, 
unless these two points are in his favor. When they 
are, he makes more than a sale, more than a profit ; he 




Leghorn Chicks Fledge Early : A Fifty Dollar " Specimen " or a Market 
Bird ; Who Can Foretell ? 

makes, in addition, a customer who will call for his goods 
again (if he has stenciled them properly), and he makes 
an interested friend in the commission man, who is as 
keen to find good stuff to sell as any producer is to find a 
market, and for the same reason, — his living depends 
on it. 

Many factors go to make up good condition and 
appearance in a shipment, especially of poultry car- 



SHIPPING TO NEW YORK 383 

casses. The ancestry, the growth, the fattening, the man- 
ner of killing, of scalding and of picking, the manner 
of packing, the package, the filling material, all help to 
make up that perfect product which reaches the market 
just when and just as the market desires it; or that un- 
desirable which figures so often in the market reports 
at the very lowest price, and is lumped in with "Nearly 
all lots arriving are poor in quality or condition" and 
goes at a forced sale. You would be surprised to know 
how often I heard the statement, so emphatic as to imply 
that it was an end of argument, " They are not wanted," 
in the course of a two-hour round of the commission 
markets of New York City. You need to learn first of 
all that to furnish what the market wants is the way to 
competence. The market will pay highest rates and 
more than the highest quoted rates for goods which are 
the best grade of the kind of stuff it wants. This is why 
country buyers throw out so much that is offered by 
producers : they have learned the lesson. 

The Producers' Price-Current Supplement, of New 
York, gives explicit instructions on all points. Having 
found a Commission merchant whom he has full reason 
to believe is reliable, the expecting shipper should write 
him, asking the conditions of the market and special 
instructions. He can have from this source stencils, 
for marking, gratis. The Commission people prefer, al- 
ways, the customer who will send regular shipments, so 
that they may know something of what they have to 
depend on. 

In turkeys, none should be dressed that weigh less 
than seven pounds, in September. Later, eight pounds 
should be the smallest. Thin, "framy" birds are al- 



384 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

ways a drug. Spring chickens should not weigh less 
than one pound, and this weight only very early ; as 
soon as chickens are in fair supply, nothing less than 
one-and-one-half pound weights will find favor. Since 
Long Island can send young ducks, full grown, very early 
in the season, and ships them by the ten thousands, it is 
but folly for any other shippers to try to meet this com- 
petition with stock less than the best and of full size or 
nearly so. " There is no call whatever for stock weigh- 
ing less than 3 and 4 pounds each." 

In all handling, extreme care must be taken to avoid 
bruising or defacing the carcass. A cardinal point, pre- 
paratory to packing, is to get rid of the animal heat. A 
process called "plumping" finishes the preparation of 
scalded stock. It consists of dipping the birds into hot 
and cold water alternately. But even with this, there 
is a right way. The first dip is into water just under 
the boiling point, for about two seconds. The cooling 
from this must be gradual, lest the drain of blood be 
stopped short. Hence, cool water, of natural tempera- 
ture, follows the hot dip, for a twenty-minute bath. If 
to be packed in ice for warm weather shipment, a sec- 
ond, cooler bath of an hour or less follows the first, and 
the ice-water bath of eight to ten hours follows and 
completes the process. Is it any wonder that cold-stored 
poultry lacks flavor, when it has all this soaking at the 
very start ? 

Poultry or sugar barrels are used for shipping tin's 
class of goods, the latter being carefully washed to re- 
move traces of sugar. The first layer (bottom) is of 
ice, then poultry and ice alternately till the barrel is 
almost full. A piece of burlap and a final layer of 




2c 



386 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

cracked ice follow, on the top of which is laid a large 
chunk of solid ice. All is hooped down close by a last 
piece of added burlap. The fowls are packed in rings 
around the outside the barrel, heads down, legs straight, 
and pointed toward the center, so that the next layer 
of ice will fall between the poultry and the staves. The 
middle of the layer is filled in at will, just as they seem 
to fit most closely. 

The water for dressing should be at boiling point, but 
not boiling. To overscald makes the yellow outer skin 
graze off ; to underscald increases the chances that the 
stock will become slippery on the way to market. 

In cold weather, poultry is packed dry, without pack- 
ing between, or with only clean, hand-thrashed, bright 
wheat or rye straw, which must also be dry. If no 
packing is used, thick manila paper lines the barrel. 
Whether scalded or dry-picked, two points are vital : 
every bit of animal heat must be out of the stock, and 
the bodies must be perfectly dry before packing. If 
not, bad conditions will shortly develop. 

The customary belief and advice that dry picking is 
always the only first-class method, is a fallacy. Thin 
poultry brings more when scalded, as it thus looks a 
bit less thin. Offerings of chickens and turkeys may 
be dry picked only when very fat and of fine quality. 
Ducks and geese should always be scalded. This is 
done by sousing them up and down in water just at 
boiling point three or four or more times, till the water 
penetrates to the skin. They are then wrapped in 
blanket cloth about two minutes ; this makes the down 
roll off with the feathers. 

Packages should be clean, neatly made, and as light 



SHIPPING TO NEW YORK 



387 




Cold Storage Chicken. (Government Year Book) 



388 . THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

as the size will bear. The latest New York information 
sheet at the time of writing says : " Use either barrels, 
or cases holding about 200 pounds. The latter are best 
for turkeys and geese." In dry packing, the birds are 
stowed in very snugly, breasts down, and legs out 
straight, the package being a little overfull, so that 
the cover will press down on the contents. 

I notice that Cornell is approving and manufacturing 
a smaller package, to hold two dozen fowls. Dr. Pen- 
nington, the government representative, favors this type. 
The shipper who learns all he can, from every source, 
will be the one most likely to win out. 

Careful addressing, plain and neat marking, naming 
of contents, gross weight and tare, and the shipping 
mark of the shipper or his name all tend toward satis- 
factory business. Express receipts should be taken and 
forwarded, with full invoice of shipment, by mail. In 
forwarding by express, a letter of advice should be put 
in one package, and marked " bill " on outside. This 
double care insures that the firm shall get the advices 
straight, in case anything befalls one of the duplicates. 

I asked a commission merchant, of wide experience, 
where most shippers of eggs failed. He said, " In the 
matter of packing and packages," mentioning the use 
of orange boxes as one of the bad habits of the small 
shipper. Having seen shipments go from the farm end 
of the line, I knew how the economical farm mind looked 
upon the orange box with fillers, as "just as good" as 
the more expensive crate. In fact, a rather large ship- 
per had recently told me that he used such packages, 
cutting the boxes in two parts, if a half case were needed. 
I knew, too, how often the farm shippers complained 



SHIPPING TO NEW YORK 389 

that they did not receive full market quotations, when 
they sent the best of goods ; and that they were charged 
with incredible losses. 

The merchant clarified the situation by saying that 
the orange box is too thin. It is springy, and permits 
heavier boxes to crowd the eggs till there is often much 
breakage. It is also a package not "standard." Not 
even the poultry show world is more devoted to its 
" Standard " than are merchants who handle market 
stuff in many and large lots to a " standard " package. 
Figuring, space, and other necessary detail can be fitted 
to a standard package instantly, and without loss. The 
principle is the same as when the farmer becomes de- 
voted to the bushel crate that just fits so many of his needs, 
and also the rack he has had made on purpose to carry 
them. I saw a fine, special rack, made by adding a few 
boards to a flat hay rigging, on which a New York 
farmer was contentedly drawing fifty crates of apples, 
all on one level. He dragged me out to the barn, just 
in order to see how nice they looked. They were shoved 
from the rack, almost, in unloading, and he took back a 
load of empties, clean and bright. There was a " why" 
behind his satisfaction with this way of selling apples. 
The shipper, if he cannot follow instructions without it, 
must look for the " why " of the commission merchant's 
requirements, and he must look till he finds it. 

" Eggs must be clean, and of good size ; these are 
basic principles of successful shipment," went on the 
dealer who knew the New York market through a life- 
time of selling on it. "What do you mean by good 
size? " " I mean not small." I laughed, and suggested, 
"Not under the regulation two ounces?" "Yes." 



390 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

"What about washing?" " JVever wash a.n egg ; tJiey 
must be produced clean." 

New York's needs are so great that a day or two may 
clean out a big stock of staff, and thus it comes about 
that only a day or two may work much change in a 
market quotation, if inshipments clog up somewhere, or 
cease suddenly. The railroads try to avoid piling too 
much stuff on one market, but this sometimes occurs. A 
frequent shipper needs to watch the market, to use tele- 
phone and telegraph for quick information as to changes, 
and to know about the markets which are recurrent, 
yet special. 

The important holiday markets for dressed stuff are 
Thanksgiving Day, Christmas, and New Year's. You 
want a good fowl — one a little extra, at these times. 
Please note: so does every one besides you ! This ex- 
plains the fact which confronts the commission merchant, 
that the holiday call is largely for the very finest grades. 
Up to Christmas, big turkeys have a call ; after that, 
the smaller sizes are preferred. The preferred holiday 
market for chickens is New Year's ; while geese sell 
best at Christmas. 

There are eight Jewish holiday periods, which are 
variable, but concerning which advices can be had from 
the dealers. Some want all kinds of fowls. Others 
specify. For instance, the market sheet states that for 
the Feast of Weeks, good fowls are especially wanted; 
for Purim, " fowls and prime hen turkeys." During 
these holidays, the demand for live poultry is much 
larger than is usual. 

The tendency is everywhere to simplify handling. 
The farm demands it, because labor is not to be had for 



SHIPPING TO NEW YORK 



39 1 




Freshly Killed Chicken, with Plump Flesh. (Government Year Book) 



392 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

any price. The city markets demand it, because time 
is precious, delay costly, and labor also costly. I in- 
quired about the proposed selling eggs by weight. Com- 
mission men said that it would, if enforced, cause them 
infinite trouble and loss. One firm of very large com- 
mission handlers said that they would drop the whole 
business were such a law enforced. They believed it 
would cause grocers less trouble, because the tendency 
is to sell all small stuff in small baskets, or rather trays, of 
a standard size. The weight of these being known, they 
would be sold, when full, as always of a certain weight, 
without weighing the sale. 

I know at least one firm of Boston dealers who furnish 
coops for live poultry, rebating their cost when they are 
received full of poultry. They take all kinds of stock, 
and make it as easy for the shipper as they can. These 
are not commission men ; they buy outright, and offer 
a stated price per pound. I hope this method of buying 
will spread. It is far more satisfactory for the produc- 
ing shipper, who hates bitterly to pay commissions. I 
judge by its development each year since beginning, 
that the business is also satisfactory to the firm. Strong, 
light coops in which the fowls can stand easily upright, 
are recommended. If large, they should be partitioned. 
It is stated that overfeeding on the, start is likely to 
make the poultry dumpish and sick, but that light feeding 
may be indulged in, when shipping from one-day-distant 
points. New York law does not permit the sale of 
poultry with food in the crop. 



XXXI 

FEATHERS AND THE MOLT 

Down Developing into Feathers — What Makes Color in 
Feathers? — Prohibition of Wearing Song-bird 
Feathers Helps Sales of Commoner Feathers — Shop- 
made Trimmings — Ducks for Feathers First — The 
Dress of Birds for Protection — Feathers as Affecting 
Laying — Experiments with Molting Hens — Foods 
for Feathers — Feathers Add most Value to Fowls 

The fancy fowl is pretty largely a creature of fine 
feathers. But there is more to the question of feathers 
than many are aware. Feathers are really but modifica- 
tions of the skin. The down, the "hair," the barbules, 
which hook together and make up the flat web of what 
we call a quill feather, all are part of the same wonder- 
ful covering. The close down upon the infant chick is 
extended and shows itself as fluffy tips upon the first 
natural feathers which follow it. These facts have long 
been known. A more curious one is that the coloring 
of the coats of birds is not always caused by pigments in 
the body of the bird. Many times it is so caused. In 
other instances it is caused by this color substance, in 
combination with a special arrangement of the outer sur- 
faces of the feathers. And again, as in the case of the 
brilliant humming birds, it is due " to the structure of the 
outer surface alone. White is not due to pigment, but 
to the presence of innumerable air cells in the substance 
of the feather." A study of feather structure, by 

393 



394 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

means of a pocket microscope, ought to be of consider- 
able aid in making up fancy matings in some breeds. 

More and more the States are coming into line in pro- 
hibiting the wearing of song-bird feathers. Each year 
skill in producing handsome and effective millinery 
trimmings, neckwear, and other decorative feather 
work increases, till it now seems almost like wizardry. 
Each year the " back-to-nature " cry increases the de- 
mand for fancy fishing tackle. All these things mean 
more demand for feathers- of all kinds. Just common 
feathers and brilliantly colored feathers. 

Not far from my home lives a quiet man who manu- 
factures fishing tackle. He is keen for brilliant feathers 
of many kinds, particularly the half-length grades, like 
hackle feathers. In millinery, glossy feathers, and those 
of any brilliant and beautiful colors, as well as all well- 
formed white feathers in perfect condition, are in large 
demand. The substitution of " wings," " breasts," etc., 
for ostrich feathers is greater as each autumn comes 
around. Great quantities of these are now artificial — 
shop-made. It is to the interest of any Beginner to 
study the question of feathers before he selects his 
breeds, especially if he expects to become a large pro- 
ducer. When fowls are marketed dressed and in large 
numbers, the feathers become a goodly item, either of 
waste or of income, according to the method of handling. 

Even the little Indian Runner duck will give, when 
matured, nearly one fourth of a pound of feathers to a 
picking. If duck feathers are sixty cents a pound, this 
means fifteen dollars for every hundred birds dressed, 
and will pay for expert dressing, more than twice over. 
If the early ducks were retained and picked three times 




Below, a Starting Feather and Its Sheath. Above, Full-grown Down 



396 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



in a season, it would mean an income from the feathers 
greater than the profit on the majority of chickens sold. 
The feed necessary to carry them on must, of course, be 
considered. Intended breeders should not be plucked, 
unless at a period when the feathers are falling natu- 




Ostriches Five Months Old. Fluffy Skirt Dancers which Give Up their Own 
Decoration to Decorate Miladi. (Government Year Book) 



rally. It is stated that plucked ducks will not lay as 
early, nor as many eggs ; nor will the eggs be as fertile. 
In other words, growing feathers is a drain upon the en- 
tire system. 



FEATHERS AND THE MOLT 397 

The plumy dress of the birds is a decoration whose 
worth we value fully only when we see a bird which has 
lost it. But it is far from being decoration only, and, 
beyond the matter of protection, feathers have a direct 
bearing on egg production. The fowl with too thin a 
coat is not a good winter layer in a cold location ; yet 
the one with too heavy a coat is not likely to fall into 
the class of best layers at all. Those birds of the Amer- 
ican breeds which are more heavily feathered than the 
average of their kind, are apt to fall below the average 
of the breed in laying capacity. Since feathers manipu- 
lated properly by the breeder who is working up a strain, 
may give any appearance desired, the feathers are likely 
to be encouraged. And, since feather growth requires 
much the same nutritive material as egg production, it 
is easy to see how a too heavy growth of feathers might 
work against a heavy egg output. A moderately heavy, 
close-lapped coat of feathers is the ideal protection for a 
laying fowl. The wind cannot easily penetrate such 
a coat, and it takes only the necessary nutriment to 
provide. 

" Some studies in molting made at Cornell University 
Experiment Station by a careful young woman from one 
of the Short Courses, Miss Clara Nixon, showed that 
maturing birds may grow several coats of feathers in a 
single season. The owner of the highest (claimed) 
record for Indian Runners showed his faith in his stock 
by entering some of the descendants of the bird making 
the record in a public laying competition. They made 
an average record of over two hundred seventeen each 
in twelve months. He accounts in part for this " poor 
showing " — as he calls it — by the fact that they passed 



398 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

through two complete molts during the twelve months' 
test. Indeed, the Secretary's report stated this fact. 
It is well known that hens seldom lay during the heavier 
part of the molt, and the fowl which lays on until late 
autumn usually molts in the later fall and winter. This 
shows something of the bearing of feather making upon 
tgg production. 

Late molting appears, from some of the work at Cor- 
nell, to have a bearing different from that which is usu- 
ally supposed, in that the late mo Iters, while not laying 
nearly so many eggs in winter as those which molted 
earlier, did molt in less time, and also did lay more eggs 
during the year. From this one experiment it must be 
adduced that the late molting bird is the better one to 
keep, since the extra eggs laid by these, even at lower 
prices, made an added profit of about $47 per hundred 
hens above that of the early molting birds. The fowls 
in this experiment consisted both of those whose molt 
had been "forced" by a period of partial summer star- 
vation, followed by a heavy feeding, and those which 
had not been so treated. A point strikingly shown by 
the charts given, is that the line showing food consumed 
climbs upward in almost exact sympathy with the up- 
ward trend of the weight lines, and the egg production 
lines ; except that food consumed and weight are always 
a little in advance of increase in egg production, all 
increase together, — a good hint for the feeder. All fowls 
in the experiment " consumed a larger quantity of food 
and increased in weight before beginning egg production." 

It has long been a belief among poultrymen that a hen 
would molt later with each year of age. The Cornell 
experiment did not prove this, but showed that the old 




Specimens of Down. That Above, Old and Frayed with Wear, Note the 
Barbules 



400 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

hens took more time for the molt, one-, two-, and three- 
year-olds using an average of eighty-two, one hundred 
one, and about one hundred four days, respectively. 
Various expert breeders testify that age, prolificacy, 
season, and individual variations all affect the length of 
time required. 

In this experiment, two pens of trap-nested hens laid 
an average of but twelve eggs each during the molt, and 
only three per cent of the hens laid while molting most 
freely. Let no one berate the hen for not laying during 
the molt, till he has fully considered that the new coat of 
feathers, to be put on at least once a year as long as she 
lives, contains (estimated) one tenth as much nitrogen 
as her egg product for the whole year, and one fifth as 
much as her body. If increase in egg production and 
increase in weight both demand increase in food, the 
inference is unescapable, from all the facts, that to lay 
during the molt, the birds must have large supplies of 
food, which is both easily digestible, and richer than 
usual in nitrogen. Since feathers contain above fourteen 
per cent of nitrogen, while the body contains less than 
one fourth as much, and the egg only about one eighth 
as much, as stated in some analyses, it takes but short 
thinking to reach the conclusion, not only that extra 
nitrogen should be added to the feed during the molt, 
but that even with this, hens should not be expected to 
lay heavily at this time. And, since eggs appear to 
average about ten times as much lime content as the 
body of the fowl, the contention of some of the food 
manufacturers that certain mineral constituents render 
their product superior for laying hens " appears" to be 
supported. The valuation of domestic fowls rests on 



FEATHERS AND THE MOLT 



401 



their weight, their product in eggs, their conformation 
(largely determined by the sight of the plumage), their 
coloring, and their worth as pets. But the greatest 




Sharply Laced Feathers, Silver Wyandotte, Required by Standard 

additions to cash value are due to the bird being feathered 
to Standard requirements for her variety. " Fuss and 
feathers," from the fancy point of view, have far greater 
value in dollars than any other attributes. The "fuss" 
belongs to the fancier, the " feathers " to the fowl. 



XXXII 

THE QUESTION OF SUPPLIES 

Many Questions about Supplies — Cornell Manufactures 
Some Specialties — Stock of a Big Supply House — 
Supplies Valuable to Many — The Supply Habit — 
Seasonal Trade Means Early Orders — Descriptions 
of Various Supplies — Testing Eggs — A Home-made 
Tester — Mortar and Pestle 

Since it has more than once been my lot to answer 
letters asking how to mark chicks for identification, how 
to test eggs, where to get portable houses, etc., I feel full 
warrant for giving some detail about poultry supplies. 
A large part of the .work of Cornell Experiment Station 
in giving direct aid to poultry farmers consists in making 
them acquainted with the best poultry supplies. Many 
such have been devised by the Cornell workers and are 
described in bulletins. Some of these may be duplicated 
by any handy man, and dimensions are given in order 
to facilitate this. 

It would be a great thing for poultry farming in New 
York State if all the farmers and poulterers could appre- 
hend the eagerness with which Cornell works to get into 
touch with them. It may be expected that the advertis- 
ing and the increased facilities which the 19 10 legislative 
grant of ninety thousand dollars to strengthen poultry 
work at Cornell for the farm benefit will give, will aid 
greatly in bringing Cornell and its poultry farming con- 
tingent together. The Farmers' Week, now an estab- 
lished function, has its very liberal and full share of 

402 



THE QUESTION OP SUPPLIES 403 

poultry work, and Cornell's aim is no less than to train 
leaders who will aid in the Uplift work all along the 
line. Incidentally, they will be a link between the 
University and the farms. This will be touched upon 
again in another chapter. 

Special models put forth by Cornell Experiment 
Station include fresh-air and winter houses, coops, 
shipping boxes, rat-proof feed hoppers, etc. Pho- 
tographs of all helpful Cornell appliances appear in 
the bulletins, and clear descriptions accompany these. 
Duplicates of the pictures are sold for a nominal price ; 
they may be used in other publications, due credit being 
given. 

The development of the modern poultry supply house 
is one of the accompanying wonders of the amazing 
enlargement of the poultry industry. It is the Be- 
ginner who pays for far the greater part of these varied 
offerings. The stock of such a house comprises, in 
some cases, about all the legitimate poultry books 
published ; in others, a supply of the cheaper ones 
in each division (breeds, houses, squabs, eggs, cavies, 
profits, specialties, etc.) — perhaps described as "a 
large portion of the most popular poultry books." 
One such list before me contains not even one of the 
newer and better books. 

Aside from books, the supplies cover incubators, 
brooders, and fixtures, portable houses and weaning 
coops, patent roofings and building papers, specially 
manufactured feeders, foods, mills, and cutters for vari- 
ous purposes ; shipping boxes and coops, poultry exer- 
cisers, fountains, sieves and screens, spraying machines, 
nests and nest eggs, disinfectants, song bird supplies, 



4°4 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



lice killers, wire nettings and staples, medicines, etc., 
besides mineral paints and numerous small handy sup- 
plies. Such are the foot-punch marker for distinguish- 
ing chicks, numbered leg bands in large variety, egg 




Automatic Feeder. Used at Connecticut Agricultural College 



testers, the pinfeather picker, and the poultry gun. 
Sometimes general garden and small farm tools are 
added. In short, the aim is to keep everything the 
town poultry man and Pet Stock Lover, and the Be- 
ginner are likely to want. 



THE QUESTION OF SUPPLIES 405 

Stock and eggs are usually supplied, also ; sometimes 
these are kept in stock ; oftener, they are bought of 
near-by breeders who are considered reliable and whose 
stock is known to be good. 

It almost goes without saying that a big trade in 
medicines is handled by most of these stores. The 
drugs are very likely to be the same as are in common 
household use, but at an advanced price. One may 
use household remedies for fowl diseases, the usual 
dose for a grown fowl being about one half as much 
as for a person, and many of the supplies may be fairly 
well duplicated by home-made articles. But the man 
who raises poultry " before and after dark," as many 
a business man must, if his wife and children are not 
interested, has no stomach for such work. It is in- 
finitely better for him to buy the poultry supplies, 
'which, except in the case of medicines, are usually 
quite fair in price. 

The " supply habit," however, is one against which 
many Beginners need to be warned ; as the purchase 
of too many of these conveniences may devour all 
the profits of the venture. But Ihold that the business 
man who raises poultry for itself and who desires to 
supply fresh eggs and poultry meat for his table does 
not need to make a real profit, other than the "profit" 
in having these things. If his household supplies 
balance the expenses in value, the venture is a paying 
one for him, even though no extra dollars go into his 
pocket. 

There are many supplies, especially of the larger 
sort, which may be had in several styles, so that the 
buyer has very good choice. Some models are much 



4Q6 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



better than others. In the case of incubators and 
brooders, it is generally common for a supply house 
to " take up " one make only, usually one of the best, 
according to popular consent. 




A Patented Feed Trough. No Place for Fowls to Roost on This 



The one point which the Beginner who must have his 
stuff shipped from the supply houses needs to note, 
especially, is that the exigencies of the supply business 
are many, and the houses are often behind on their 
orders for the most popular goods. Much of the trade 
is seasonal, and all customers want the goods at nearly 
the same period. This means that if you want the stuff 
when you want it, — and some people are made that 
way ! — you need to order well in advance. For in- 
cubators and brooders, two or three months ahead is 
pretty safe — less time may or may not be. In March 
of a certain year, I heard from behind the scenes of a 
big New York supply house that even the manager's 



THE QUESTION OF SUPPLIES 407 

letters were being ignored by the main office in another 
city. " Probably behind on their orders for machines 
and giving every ounce of strength to them" was the 
New York manager's explanation of the unpleasant 
facts. 

Incubator thermometers and hygrometers have been 
the subjects of much wear and tear of gray matter on 
the part of manufacturers. One manufacturer, who 
believes himself singularly immune from the error germ, 
avers that none of the (other) hygrometers made for in- 
cubators have much value. One of the newer makes 
of incubator thermometers has the mercury bulb set in 
the middle of a celluloid egg, where it is guaranteed to 
give the exact temperature at the center of the real 
eggs, in any make of incubator, and no matter what 
the method of heating : by diffusion, radiation, or what 
not. 

The supply houses talk a bit about many defective 
regulators on machines. I have not found trouble of 
this sort, in using four different makes. I am inclined to 
think such difficulty may come from carelessness, where 
the regulator is on the top of the machine. It might 
possibly come, in certain machines, through gross over- 
heating of the machine. 

An egg cabinet and turner supplied with a wire 
pocket for each egg, and holding, as to size, from 
fifteen dozen to eighty-four dozen is a very handy 
appliance. The eggs can be rotated at will through 
a one-half turn of the swinging body portion. 

There are cheap egg testers, usually at twenty-five 
cents in the stores or thirty-five cents by mail. An 
electric tester is also offered. It is said to give a much 



THE QUESTION OF SUPPLIES 409 

stronger light than a lamp tester, and costs perhaps five 
dollars. All the testers I have seen work fairly well ; 
which really means little more than that they give light 
enough for the work. A home-made tester can be made 
that will do practical work. A hollow tube through which 
one looks toward the light, the eggs being held singly 
against the end farthest from the eye, answers the pur- 
pose of many. Better, is a cylinder of tin or tough, 
elastic pasteboard, large enough to set over a lamp car- 
rying a Rochester or similar burner. 

One of the most interesting supplies is the rotating 
cylinder hung in a frame, and known as " the lice-killing 
machine." I used one of these for some years and 
found it to do its work well. The chief objection to it 
was that it frightened the chicks sadly ; but this can 
be partly obviated by turning the cylinder very slowly. 
The chicks are placed, together with a safe lice powder, 
in the cylinder, which is then turned by a crank, just as 
you would turn a corn sheller handle. It is easy to see 
that the chicks may be far more thoroughly cleaned in 
this machine than by hand, even though one tried to be 
very thorough indeed with the latter method. Tobacco 
makes the chicks' eyes smart, but I think insect powder 
is not so much open to objection. The machines are 
made in several sizes ; when using the chick size, a 
goodly brood can be put in at once. 

The foot punches and leg bands make distinction of 
special birds so easy that no one who raises poultry in 
any numbers should be without them. They are an 
almost necessary adjunct to the trap nest, which is of 
little value unless the fowls can be distinguished, each 
from the other. 



410 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Every one who has farm antecedents or who is situ- 
ated on the farm, will doubtless be glad to learn that 
there is a cast-iron mortar with concrete pestle, designed 
for crushing crockery, brittle bones, etc., — I saw 
this priced at three dollars ; the size, as given, was nine 
inches square on the floor and a foot deep, the pestle 
handle being four feet long, so that the user could stand 
while working. 

A wire stretcher, with steel grips, is another of the 
handy tools which the poultryman, who has much wire 
fencing to put up, can scarcely afford to be without. 
There is also a special kind of pliers for staple 
pulling. 



XXXIII 

EFFICIENCY THE KEY TO SUCCESS 

What Ought To Be and What Is — A Lesson from Life — 
Locating Inefficiency — Reform — Applying Efficiency 
Principles — Revolution through Efficiency Methods — ■ 
Three Selected Efficiency Principles — Oversight a Vital 
Point — Tabulation for Efficiency in Poultry Work. 

It has been said again and again in our public prints 
that most business enterprises fail. The men who 
figure have put the per cent of successes as one out of 
20. Doubtless, the failures in poultry keeping do not 
count as high as this ; yet poultry keeping is commonly 
considered unusually risky. Some business folk who 
profess to be especially well informed in this matter 
affirm that the " efficiency of capital investment in in- 
dustrial plants " is seldom found to be above 30 per 
cent. That is, calling what ought to be as 100, what actu- 
ally is, in the working of the plants, must be called thirty. 
Putting poultry keeping as a commerial venture on the 
same plane, the figures which you work out so labori- 
ously as what ought to be, will dwindle, in the actual 
handling of the business, to less than one third ; your 
profits will be one third of what you figured them ! 
This — just this — is the weak point; this is the crucial 
reason for so many failures. And still you ask, " Why ? " 
The firms which now sell efficiency, as one may say, 
assert that it is because of waste — of energy, of time, of 
nerve force, of money. 

4U 



412 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



An illustration from the life of to-day will show ex- 
actly what is meant. Not far from my home, a large 
contract job is being done. A public building is being 
moved, and a larger main part put up adjoining. I 

have heard contract 
building or contract 
jobs in general re- 
ferred to as "the 
biggest gamble in 
business life." In 
this specific contract 
work, the roof was 
removed from this 
large building of 
which I speak, the 
shingles being de- 
posited in a heap 
near by. The lot 
is rather small for 
the proposed build- 
ing, which may be a 
part of the reason 
for the way things 
work out. What- 
ever the reasons, the 
fact is that the heap of shingles has already been moved 
three times, and is now so located that it must inevitably 
be handled at least once more. Somebody, then, pays 
for four handlings, when one would be sufficient under 
proper management. Inefficiency, here, traces directly 
to the man in charge. If you will study different cases, 
will you not find that inefficiency always traces to some 
man or men back of the work ? 




Planting Efficiency : Good Poultry Feeds, and 
Nitrogen Gatherers. The Root Nodules Fix 
the Nitrogen 



EFFICIENCY THE KEY TO SUCCESS 413 

I have in possession the booklet of a firm of " Busi- 
ness Tinkers " located in New York City whose entire 
work is to study the business of any firm which may en- 
gage them, and figure out where the inefficiency is, and 
what is required to change from inefficiency to efficiency. 
In some cases, this means only from small profits to large 
ones ; in others, it means a change from losses to good 
profits. And I heard a representative of this firm say 
that their work was equally forceful and effective in all 
lines of business : factories, stores, stock-keeping, rail- 
roading, and what not. This is because it is founded on 
principles. 

It is because principles are underlying things and can 
be applied by any one who understands them and will 
go at it systematically, that I am putting this most mod- 
ern of business advances into this book for Beginners 
in poultry keeping. One who is systematic and keen 
and honest with himself c,an apply these principles to his 
own business as certainly as can the expert. But, his 
eye is not so well trained, his experience is less, and he 
will be tempted to give himself the benefit of the doubt. 
For these reasons, it is far better to try to apply these 
principles before beginning instead of after having made 
the blunders of inefficiency ; not to mention the saving 
in money and in wear and tear. 

The Efficiency Experts, in their booklet, apply their 
principles to a case in which a man intends to go into 
honey producing as a business. By questioning him, 
they find out: 

1. That he expects to secure 25 pounds of honey a year 
per colony ; 

2. That he thinks of settling on the seashore, where 
he has relatives ; 



414 



THE EECIXXER IN POULTRY 




Principles are Underlying: Nodules of Velvet Bean. A Nitrogen Gatherer 
which Prepares the Ground for Other Legumes 



EFFICIENCY THE KEY TO SUCCESS 415 

3. That he does not know the life habits of bees ; 

4. That he will not employ skilled help ; 

5. That he does not intend to subscribe to bee peri- 
odicals, or call upon other helpful agencies ; 

6. That he has not studied " the spirit of the hive " ; 

7. That he will not use Italian queens, nor watch out 
for feed and for their enemies, but expects only to sell 
honey, while the bees take care of themselves ; 

8. That he plans only to keep records of the weather ; 
not of the bees, their needs, products, etc. 

Though possibly this case is exaggerated, as an ex- 
ample, I think it is not worse than the vague state of 
mind of many of those who would like to go into poultry 
as a money-making opening. The above system always 
includes a schedule, first, of the efficiency of the business 
plans, or the actual working of a business as the Experts 
find it in operation. In such a schedule, they mark this 
bee man ten, twenty, thirty, and, in one case, fifty per 
cent lacking, according to his answers to the questions. 
On one number they mark him below zero. This was 
the " fair deal "for the bees. He gets about a fourteen per 
cent rating as to efficiency, and the expert comment is 
that the intending investor is, on his own testimony, 
foredoomed to failure. 

Much has been said about the "fussiness" of women, 
especially when they try to do serious things. But no 
woman, at her fussiest, was ever so fussy as these busi- 
ness experts of the trousered sex. In a large company, 
I heard one of them tell how he would go to work to 
add efficiency to the kitchen end of the home. He in- 
stanced a kitchen, having the stove on one side the 
room, the table on another, a closet for the kitchen 



416 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



implements some feet distant from the table, etc., and 
with the table too low, so that a strain was constantly on 
the back of the worker. He showed how the housewife, 
working in this illy arranged " shop," would walk seven 
feet and back, from six to a dozen times, merely in as- 
sembling her baking materials and tools. He referred 




''Graded'' Corn, The Staple Poultry Feed, as Grown and Shown by Mid" 
West Boys. Getting in Line for Efficiency 



to the lost motions in not reducing bread making to a 
system of movements always performed in the same 
way and in the same order. In applying the system to 
her needs, on two or three different days the expert 
would watch this worker, record her movements and her 
steps, tabulate all, and work out a plan to cut out possi- 



EFFICIENCY THE KEY TO SUCCESS 417 

bly 75 per cent of the useless motions and steps. I 
heard a college woman say, afterward, that her house- 
work would be revolutionized from that day forth because 
of this fifteen-minute talk. Another said that one house 
in which she lived had at least 25 feet of distance between 
the flour bin and the molding table, and another had 
the width of three rooms between the kitchen stove and 
the molding board built in at the farther end of the long 
pantry. Nothing could more clearly show the need for 
women as kitchen architects or the mission of the kitchen 
cabinet. The Expert who gave the address urged that 
women apply the principles of the work which his firm was 
doing to the details of their daily work, for themselves. 

Whether the underlying principles are few or many, 
depends somewhat on how they are stated. The firm 
of which I speak names twelve, and states, in addition, 
that some would condense them all into the single word, 
"common sense." The three which I wish to bring es- 
pecially to your notice are the necessity for records of 
what is actually being done, the necessity of " a fair deal," 
and the necessity of what is called an " efficiency reward." 
The records, it is demanded, must be " reliable, immedi- 
ate, and accurate " ; the fair deal applies to the under 
workers chiefly ; the efficiency rewards are a premium 
paid to the employee for doing " Standardized work." 
The form is not so essential as the fact, since without 
hope of reward "even the best weary in well-doing." 

Employers here and there have had visions of effi- 
ciency, before the rise of modern firms of efficiency ex- 
perts, and have managed their own business by these 
principles, perhaps before they were ever tabulated. 
We may well wonder whether the successful five per cent 



418 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

were not principally composed of tJiese ! Recently, a man 
died in Michigan, who had made his name familiar to 
the public all over the United States as a special grower 
of strawberry plants. He stated in his circular that one 
reason why his business was reliable and successful 
was that his employees were especially trained. Every 
worker allowed to help among the plants was trained 
as soldiers are drilled, viz., to perform all motions — in 
setting a plant, say — in the same order and exactly in the 
same way and perfectly. One cannot help seeing how 
this would simplify the work of the foreman, who would 
have a definite standard to which to hold the workers. 

Many of the things which have been said in other 
chapters of this book fall directly under this idea of 
efficiency in work. The men who have been succeed- 
ing with poultry have been those whose nature it was 
to be efficient. Webster defines efficiency as "the qual- 
ity of producing effects." Young America abbreviates 
it to " gets there." Another way of expressing it is, 
" the ratio of product to energy expended." " Energy," 
in a business sense, meaning time, money, work — all 
that is invested in aiming to get an expected result. 

We might make an efficiency tabulation of our own 
for poultry. In it would come keen oversight as a lead- 
ing force. The smaller the items of a business, and the 
smaller the output of each individual concerned, the 
more need for oversight, that the little foxes may not 
" spoil the vines." Location, and saving in steps in the 
daily routine, would be important. Saving feed, saving 
losses in young stock, saving unnecessary expenses all 
around, would count much. A fair deal to the birds 
would be a main necessity, also. Understanding of the 



EFFICIENCY THE KEY TO SUCCESS 42 1 

laws of life for fowls, and of the laws of business in 
general, would both be necessities to efficiency. Profits 
often inhere chiefly in the savings and the extra incomes 
of good salesmanship. First, last, and all the time, study 
of life in general, of human nature, of bird nature, of 
psychology, etc., is a necessity. A natural " law " is as 
unvarying as the sun in its course. As it acts once, so 
it acts always. On such laws, a poultryman may count ; 
for they are stable. Looking these points over, dare 
you say that yon will be an efficiency man ? An effi- 
ciency woman, as a poultry keeper ? 

I have been greatly interested to note that two thirds 
of the points which these Business Tinkers demand tally 
exactly with the divisions of the work which I have out- 
lined for the Beginner. Conditions, planning, records, 
common sense, the "fair deal," which depends on un- 
derstanding the nature of the birds, the " competent 
counsel," which consists in finding out what you do not 
know from some one who does, — all these appear in the 
expert plan for "Business Efficiency." 

Tabulating the efficiency points noted, as applied to 
poultry, we might have something like this : — 

Location and Plan. — Saving in steps, in feed, in chicks. 

Oversight. — Of workers, or of Stock. 

A Square Deal. — Including comfort and working 
material, for worker birds. 

Understanding of Laws. — Of life — Of business. 

Salesmanship. — Knowledge of men — Of markets. 

Study. — Of all that touches life or business. 

Records. — For efficiency reference. 

Checking Up. — Owner and employees especially. 



XXXIV 

THE BEGINNER'S FOES AND HIS FRIENDS 

Systems, and Gullibility — " A Dollar a Sell" — How 
Things Hinge Together — A Basic Fact and Geometri- 
cal Progression — False Premises Insure False Con- 
clusions — One Square Foot per Bird — " Books " 
which are not Books — The Weak Spot — ■ A Safe 
Place to read "System" Books — Conservation of 
Common Sense — Good Germs and Bad — First Aid 
to the Beginner — Good luck to the Beginner! 

No undefended Beginner who comes under the zone 
of influence of any poultry or farm paper, in these modern 
times, is safe from the "germ " which riots through the 
systems of the inoculated, to the sure end that they in- 
vest in one or several " System " books. System — just 
plain system — is such an indubitably good thing, such 
a rock foundation of a successful poultry business, that 
it deserves every laudatory adjective in the average 
vocabulary. But " Systems," in the specific, modern 
poultry-world sense, are in the most nauseating bad odor 
with all but the gullible. The chief openings to gulli- 
bility are ignorance and curiosity. These, then, the 
" Systems " set out to capture. " None other need 
apply " would be a most excellent wording of their, atti- 
tude toward the world. 

Some one writing in an agricultural paper sounds the 
warning thus : " Be careful from whom you buy. Have 
nothing to do with those whose promises are obviously 
impossible. If a man advertises that his flock has 

422 



THE BEGINNER'S FOES AND HIS FRIENDS 



423 



averaged more than 250 eggs per hen yearly, avoid him. 
Speaking of a certain " System," the same man says : 
" Any man possessing a grain of sense knows that if 
this person had a ' System ' by which he could make the 




Plucking the Ostrich: Plumes are Legitimately Worth Much More than "A 
Dollar a Sell " 



immense profits that he claimed to have done, he would 
have kept it to himself and have gone right on clearing 
$50,000 from every acre instead of selling his ' System ' 
at a dollar a Sell." 



424 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

"A dollar a ' sell '" might be considered a complete 
commentary on the whole matter, but the first " sell " is 
not the end of the " System " ; for it usually includes 
selling to the novice books, supplies, even incubators and 
brooders, besides the book which was the original enter- 
ing wedge. 

The way all these things hinge together is utterly un- 
suspected, it may be, by the Beginner. For instance, 
at a big show, I saw a very large display of supplies by 
a firm which does big advertising. That is, of course, 
perfectly legitimate. I had noted, with great surprise, 
as I passed the booth, that it was offering a certain 
book which ranks among " Systems," as far and away 
the best poultry book published. Noting the firm name, 
however, I saw that this was its own book. I have this 
book in my possession, and it was given me by a near 
Beginner, who, having paid his good money for it and 
read it eagerly, pronounced it absolutely worthless. I 
did not entirely agree with him, because there is much 
really good workable advice to the uninitiated, in its 
pages. But, first and foremost, it was an advertising 
medium for the stock, etc., of the firm putting it out. 
To call it the best book ever offered to poultry raisers 
was an insult to the Beginner, to the regular writers of 
genuine poultry books, and to the Colleges which put out 
legitimate literature month by month. 

There is one fact which every Beginner ought to think 
much on, if he wishes to save himself from what we 
have come to call " exploitation." The basic truth 
underlying a large number of the systems is the same, 
and it cannot be controverted. This is why it is possible 
for them to state without absolute falsehood that exor- 



THE BEGINNER'S FOES AND HIS FRIENDS 425 

bitant amounts (judged by the common standard) of 
money can be made in a back yard by any one with a 
few hens. " Any one can do it," they say ; and no one 
can give them the lie, without explaining at considerable 
length just what he means. 

The basic truth referred to is, that, if every egg which 
every vigorous hen lays is incubated and the resulting 
• chicks are raised and turned off as quickly as possible, 
or the females turned into layers, season after season, 
the astounding result is as sure as any other tremendous 
growth by Geometrical Progression. 

Take just one "System" statement as a starter, and 
see how easily we can figure a competence : " All well- 
cared-for hens should lay an average of 200 eggs a 
year." Fifteen such hens will, of course (since figures 
do not lie), lay 3000 eggs ; which, if turned into chicks 
and raised to maturity, must give the worker 3000 fowls, 
worth at least a dollar apiece, when they are of the 
right kind. Here is your $3000, from fifteen hens, in a 
single season and not a hair turned ! Every inference 
is incontrovertible as it stands. Haven't you proved it 
by arithmetic, the most exact science known to man? 

But, here is another statement, which every person 
living, be he chicken crank or just ordinary flesh and 
blood, ought to ponder ; ought to ponder till it becomes 
his full panoply against every false argument : Any 
absnrd and false assertion which any person may elect to 
make can be proved {by logical argument) if the premise 
upon which that argument is based is untrue, or misleading. 

It is upon the false premise that the deceitful " System " 
is so securely based. Very many of them are based 
upon the assumed premise that it is practicable for " any 



42 6 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

one " to hatch all the eggs from any specified number 
of hens, and raise all the chicks therefrom. 

How are you, on your small city lot, going to handle 
these 3000 birds, assuming that you hatch and raise 
them ? Have you capital enough for the feed ? For the 
supplies ? It will take hundreds of dollars. Have you 
time enough and strength enough to spare for all this work ? 
Have you figured that 3000 fowls need 3000 square feet 
merely to stand on; while your lot, if it be 25 feet by 100 
feet, one fourth occupied by a (small) house, has only 1875 
square feet to offer ? Or, if you discount the laying and 
the hatching, etc., till you have only 1875 birds, or even 
sell down to 1000, do you think they will keep in health in 
such conditions, even though you strain your good back- 
bone through continual spading and cleaning, in addition 
to the regular work of feeding and watering ? Come, now, 
do you really desire earnestly to spade that entire city 
lot of yours, every day of your life ? That is a part of 
the requirements of the " System," and if you don't 
follow the rules, you release the " party of the first part" 
from the responsibility for your failure. 

If I speak feelingly in this matter, it is because I have 
on my desk as apart of the day's mail a series of questions 
from a man in the largest city in the United States, 
all about starting into back-yard poultry raising as a 
money-making business. He tells me a lot of facts (?) 
about several breeds, which betray his ignorance, and I 
see his finish before he begins! Upon what other busi- 
ness would a sane man expect to enter, when every 
possible condition was utterly unfavorable ? And in 
connection with what other would he part with his 
common sense before entering upon it? 



THE BEGINNER'S FOES AND HIS FRIENDS 427 

Even many so-called "books" which do not offer a 
" System " are more and more a snare to the Beginner. 
Books which are essentially nothing but an advertising 
circular for the stock of their writers flood the market, 
and are offered as the Beginner's one hope at 75 cents 
and one dollar a copy in paper covers. The best way 
to judge the probable value of any book is to learn 
something about the author : his knowledge, his charac- 
ter, and his possession of the teaching faculty. On these 
three points rests the possible value of informative books 
of every sort. Ninety per cent of the books offered in 
some fields of work, if not in all, would be thrown out 
as not good enough, if subjected to the above test. 

But, suppose the man who sees both sides says : 
" They do, however, give plenty of good advice to any 
one who is competent to pick it out." (I have seen this 
argument used.) 

This, I think, strikes at the real weak spot in all the 
Systems : they have so much of " buncombe," so much 
exaggeration, so much depreciation of all other methods, 
that they simply make pi of the ideas of any novice, who 
is, in the nature of things, easily confused. Possibly it 
is true that some give more information for the money 
than can be had in other ways for the same money. But 
their defect is that the information is not all reliable. 
And zvho is to pick out tJie good from the other kind for 
the puzzled Beginner ? A question and answer book, of 
which there are several, would be less likely to do him 
harm ; because these, at least, try to keep within the ex- 
perience of the great majority of poultrymen, in giving 
their information. 

There is, perhaps, one place where a novice might 



428 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

revel in System and Secret books, and come off scot- 
free ; this is, at an Experiment Station where he was 
taking a poultry course. Being then able to ask ques- 
tions of those of stable mind and experienced hands, and 
to discuss every questionable statement with those who 
were interested in the same thing, and many of whom 
would have more experience than himself, he would find 
the sawdust pulled out of practically everything that 
might be " stuffed," and the real inwardness of it laid 
bare to an inquiring public. And just this is the treat- 
ment required by hundreds of schemes that spring upon 
us out of the shady paths of life, from cooperative rub- 
ber plantations and gold mines and cigar stores and 
whisky stills and scores more, to gold mines that the 
faithful hen digs out of the lap of that dear Mother Earth, 
who feeds all her creatures with something. Let us 
hope none of us may bite on sawdust or tenpenny nails 
when we have supposed ourselves to be chewing care- 
fully and Fletcherly on " nutriment." 

We have reached the point where a large part of the 
efforts of the state and federal governments in the 
Agriculture Division is expended in trying to protect the 
Beginner and the farmer from those who would fleece 
them. Ignorance makes any man vulnerable, and good 
judgment must be based upon knowledge and experience. 
Is it not a time for us to " conserve " our common sense, 
to increase our knowledge, and, if we cannot protect our- 
selves, at least to flee to those who can protect us, and 
not into the open arms of our Exploiters ? 

Every Beginner with poultry is surrounded by a 
legion of invisible " influences," who might be named, 
as a certain Health System names the invisible workers 






430 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



within the body, " devs " and " angs." These last are 
the germ legions ; both the enemies, and the armies of 
" good germs " which repel them. Presumably, the 
above-quoted new-coined terms are short for devils and 
angels, which may be strong meat even for those who 
would like to characterize fittingly those who prey upon 
the Beginner, and to separate them by a clear line of 
demarcation from those who would help him. But a 
term sufficiently strong, yet not too strong, is difficult to 
find. 

The Beginner is supported and braced on all sides by 
the work of a thousand experienced ones who have gone 
before him, many of whom are in the state Experiment 
Stations, working ever, day by day and month by month, 
in his interest. We, the people of the States, pay them 
to do this, and they do it with right good will thrown in. 
There is also a goodly group of writers who are doing 
their best to make clear, open paths in which all may 
walk toward fullest success. The Beginner is the most 
important person in the poultry business, from one 
point of view ; because, if he ceases, the business will 
soon come to an end by natural limitation of the life of 
man. It is to the real interest of every honest worker 
with poultry that the Beginner shall be a Success. Let 
us all, then, wish him good luck and a steady, level head ! 
And let us do him every good turn possible. 



GLOSSARY OF BREEDER'S SPECIAL 
TERMS 

Admitted : accepted by the American Poultry Association as 
having conformed to its requirements, and placed in its 
Standard. 

American: a class containing certain breeds originating in 
America (all general-purpose birds). 

Beard : a tuft of feathers on throat or breast. In turkeys a 
tuft of hairs on the breast of males. 

Bird : any domestic fowl. 

Brassy : showing yellowish tinge on white plumage. 

Breed : a distinct group of fowls which perpetuates its own 
special characteristics. " Shape makes the breed " is a 
common fancier's maxim. Breeds include " varieties." 

Brood : any lot of young fowls hatched or brooded together. 

Carriage : the attitude of a bird, in standing or moving. The 
way of holding wings, tail, and head and the balance of 
the bird help to make up carriage. 

Class : in the " Standard " sense, a group comprising certain 
breeds, placed together because of origin, likeness in some 
traits, etc. The Standard of Perfection groups breeds 
into fourteen classes. 

Cock : a male bird one year old or older. 

Cockerel : a male bird not yet one year old. 

Colony House : A detached house, carrying only a few birds, 
used without yards. 

Condition : the state of the fowl as to (a) health ; (b) plump- 
ness ; (c) plumage. 

Conditioning : giving especial care to put into the best condi- 
tion, especially for showing. 

431 



43 2 



THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 



Coverts : half-long feathers, covering others and filling out the 
form in various sections ; as, " tail coverts." 

Cultures : fluids in which germs have been artificially de- 
veloped, for study, or other specific purposes. 

Disqualified ' : judged unworthy to compete for prizes, because 
of undue defects. 

Ear lobes : somewhat circular areas of bare skin, red, white, 
etc., below the ears proper. 

Egg duct: the soft tube in which the egg is conveyed from 
the ovary, toward the point of exclusion. 

Exclusion : expulsion from the egg duct. 

Face : the bare skin about the eyes of a fowl. 

Faking: preparing a bird for exhibition with an effort to de- 
ceive the judges as to its real quality. (Example, arti- 
ficial coloring of feathers.) The dividing line between 
" grooming " and faking should come at the point where 
improvements in appearance deceive as to the breeding 
quality of the specimen. 

Fancy, The : the people interested in breeding and exhibiting 
fancy fowls. 

Flights : the outer, long quill feathers of the wing, used in flying. 

Fluff: short, soft feathers, appearing like down, on the 
posterior parts of any fowl's body. 

Gapes: an affection of the windpipe caused by threadlike 
worms, which choke the birds, especially the young. 

Gosling: the young of the goose family. 

Hackle : the half-long feathers depending from the head and 
about the neck, above the "cape," which is formed by 
the first feathers of the back. 

Hen : a female bird one year or more old. 

Knock-kneed : having crooked legs, approaching each other at 
the joint at upper end of shank. 

Laced : having the feathers edged with a contrasting color. 

Mandibles : the upper and lower parts of the beak. 



GLOSSARY OF BREEDER'S SPECIAL TERMS 433 

Penciled : marked in contrasting lines, often concentric. Said 

of feathers. 
Pea Comb : triple combs, joined into one at the base. 
Points : arbitrary values given to various parts of the fancy 

fowl — 100 points indicating perfection. Each class has 

its own " Scale of Points." 
Primaries : see " Flights." 
Pullet : a female fowl not yet one year old. 
Purple Barring : cross lines of purple sheen, often appearing 

on black where full greenish sheen is demanded. 
Recognized : acknowledged as a Standard breed. 
Rose Comb : a low, broad, solid comb, usually covered with 

blunt beaded points. 
Roup : a contagious disease of the head and eyes, akin to 

diphtheria. 
Scale of Points : an arbitrary allowance of the number of points 

belonging to each of fifteen sections. 
Scaly leg : an affection producing roughness of the legs, from 

the presence of mites beneath the smooth scales of the 

shank. 
Section: a division of the body of a bird, especially for the 

purposes of judging at exhibitions. Judges are instructed 

to consider carefully every section of any bird to be 

judged. They " must" do so. 
Shank : that section of the leg just above the foot, covered 

with scales. 
Sickles : the pair of long feathers floating above the true or 

main tail. 
Silver-laced : Laced with silvery white, as the hackles in 

Silver Wyandottes. 
Spangled : blotched at the end of the feather with contrasting 

color. 
Squirrel Tail: a tail carried forward of the line perpendicular 

to the back at its junction with tail. 

2 F 



434 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Standard of Perfection : the book containing the authorized 
descriptions of all recognized breeds, according to the 
American Poultry Association's demands. 

Tom : the male turkey. 

Variety: a division of a breed, usually differentiated bv color 
only. 

Wattlos: fleshy, pendent growths from the throat, near the 
bill. 

Weaning coop : the larger coop which receives a brood when 
weaned from the hen, or brooder. 

Web: the flat, plumy surface portion of the feather, with barbs 
interlocked. 

Wing Bar: a bar o\ contrasting or especially brilliant color 
extending across the wing made by markings on the wing- 
covert feathers. 

Wry tail : a tail turned to one side by accidental or other 
deformitv. 



ACTING HEADS OF STATE AGRI- 
CULTURAL COLLEGES 

These names are from the list sent me by the Agricultural Department late 
in 191 1, upon my request for the latest available. Some of these officials 
are Presidents, some Acting Presidents, some Deans of their several col- 
leges, and two or three are Principals. But a letter addressed to these 
names will bring any information available which any man may properly 
ask from his own state workers. In special instances of position or of 
need, many of the schools will also send to inquirers without their states. 

Alabama. — Auburn : Chas. G. Thach. Normal : W. S. 

Buchanan. Tuskegee Institute : Booker T. Washington. 
Arizona. — Tucson: A. E. Douglass. 
Arkansas. — Fayetteville : C. F. Adams. 
California. — Berkeley : E. J. Wickson. 
Colorado. — Fort Collins : Chas. A. Lory. 
Connecticut. — Storrs : C. L. Beach. 

Delaware. — Newark : Geo. A. Harter. Dover : W. C. Jason. 
Florida. — Gainesville: J. J. Vernon. Tallahassee: Nathan 

B. Young. 
Georgia. — Athens : Andrew M. Soule. Savannah : R. R. 

Wright. 
Hawaii. — Honolulu : J. W. Gilmore. 
Idaho. — Moscow : W. L. Carlyle. 
Illinois. — Urbana : E. Davenport. 
Indiana. — La Fayette : J. H. Skinner. 
Iowa. — Ames : E. W. Stanton. 
Kansas. — Manhattan : H. J. Waters. 
Kentucky. — Lexington : M. A. Scovell. Frankfort : J. S. 

Hathaway. 

435 



436 THE BEGINNER IN POULTRY 

Louisiana. — Baton Rouge : Thos. D. Boyd. New Orleans : 

H. A. Hill. 
Maine. — Orono : R. J. Aley. 
Maty land. — College Park : R. W. Silvester. Princess Anne : 

T. H. Kiah. 
Massachusetts. — Amherst : Kenyon L. Butterfield. 
Michigan. — East Lansing : J. L. Snyder. 
Minnesota. — University Farm, St. Paul : A. F. Woods. 
Mississippi. — Agricultural College : J. C. Hardy. Alcorn : 

L. J. Rowan. 
Missouri. — Columbia : F. B. Mumford. Jefferson City : 

B. F. Allen. 
Montana. — Bozeman : Jas. M. Hamilton. 
Nebraska. — Lincoln : E. A. Burnett. 
Nevada. — Reno : Joseph E. Stubbs. 
New Hampshire. — Durham : Wm. D. Gibbs. 
New Jersey. — New Brunswick: W. H. S. Demarest. 
New Mexico. — Agricultural College : VV. E. Garrison. 
New York. — Ithaca : L. H. Bailey. 
North Carolina. — West Raleigh: D. H. Hill. Greensboro: 

Jas. B. Dudley. 
North Dakota. — Agricultural College : J. H. Worst. 
Ohio. — Columbus: H. C. Price. 
Oklahoma. — Stillwater : J. H. Connell. Langston : Inman 

E. Page. 
Oregon. — Corvallis : W. J. Kerr. 
Pennsylvania. — State College : Edwin E. Sparks. 
Rhode Island. — Kingston : Howard Edwards. 
South Carolina. — Clemson College : W. M. Riggs. Orange- 
burg : Thos. E. Miller. 
South Dakota. — Brookings : R. L. Slagle. 
Tennessee. — Knoxville : Brown Ayres. 

Texas. — College Station: R. T. Milner. Prairieview : E. L. 
Blackshear. 



HEADS OF STATE AGRICULTURAL COLLEGES 437 

Utah. — Logan : J. A. Widtsoe. 

Vermont. — Burlington : Elias Lyman. 

Virginia. — Blacksburg : P. B. Barringer. Hampton : H. B. 

Frissell. 
Washington. — Pullman : E. A. Bryan. 
West Virginia. — Morgantown : E. D. Sanderson. Institute : 

Byrd Prillerman. 
Wisconsin. — Madison : H. L. Russell. 
Wyoming. — Laramie : Chas. O. Merica. 



INDEX 



: i i i for, 248 
A© ident, J' ' ning i hances of, 42, 

ey, oi mind and method, 269, 
Aconite, for roupy 1 olds, 128, 
A< tion, erratic , in fowl s, due to mi , 
Advance in poultry int< r< st, 283, 
Advertii 1 nw 

' l.r.-.ill'-'l, ,'.'/ 

kinds of, 

tram u nt, woithh , ;'•', 

ti 1//;' : 

and bad, $71 , ,/-■ 
manufa< turei , $7 ;, ',77. 

ni' ili','! /.].< 

I mi tab m $74, 

ood \>\' king out, 427 
h Cornell, 402. 
Alfalfa: 
cheap and good • •■, \ io 
limits ostri< 1/ farming, $54, 
poi toned, for mi< 1 
Amateurs, made to • 11 to , , 
■ : ■' 1 Departmental, tables of, 
86 

limiting, 187, 
of fowls, many, 1 
Animal 
controlling, through feed, 79, 
predaceous, farmers' debit to, 144. 
1 i tory, in fowl , ti8. 
Appeal of thi 

Apples, resull ■. from feeding, 04 
Appropriation . 501. 

Argument, false, perfect shield against, 
1 2 5 
ariation in sample of 94 
A I i:. tnent,during p 

• 42, 145. 



Poultry; 
advance work, 2 
Auxil • iropos© 1 1 264 
rules, 2.54. 

counl / I ■< * J' 1 ■■< /. 276, 
Atavism, 187, coo 
,■■.•/■ not eno gh, 52, 
- pro - 87 
Award* proto 
Ax, the best medicine, 104, 



B 



Bacteria, noxious and otherwisi 
Barley ■< 1 •.. .• ■ ■ d, 97, 

Bi ol f< eding, v'- 

'•' 79- 

Beauty transformed to ugliness, /^. 

Bi pulp: 

comb ■- ■ *" ! ; . 95. 

notably good feed, 05 

soaking 95 
Beets, feeding for health, 95. 
Beginner: 

the, bra< ing 

estimate o) ■ afe, (00. 

has thre< chano 1 79 

influences surrounding, 428. 

no), tested, 18. 

preme importance, 4 50, 

protecting the, 428. 
Beginner's promise oi success, 208, 
Birds, handling small lots of, 96. 

three thousand on 1875 'i- f'--> 

426- 
Blackhead : 

in tui ■ / ' '' 53J , $32. 

symptom -. of, 531. 
B - ■.' mingling, 186, 
Blunder, the wor >t, 1 2. 



439 



44© 



INDEX 



Books : 

a snare, 426. 

judging value of, 426. 

poultry, 283. 

"System," where safe, 284, 428. 
Bowel trouble, excess protein brings 

on, 84. 
Box, orange, too thin for egg ship- 
ments, 389. 
Brains, where worth most, 38. 
Breakdowns of fowls, how many? 105. 
Breeders : 

Leghorn, differ, 27. 

not to be plucked, 396. 
Breeding : 

close, 188. 

in-and-in, 188. 

in line, 187. 

line, satisfactory, 196. 
Breeds : 

best laying, 293. 

grouping, 2. 

miscellaneous, 23. 

outstanding, 25. 

popular, non-Standard, 340, 341. 

to let alone, 26. 

white-egg, 250. 
Brevities, 197. 
Brooder : 

a tight, 73. 

demands personal care, 64. 

tireless, constructing, 70, 71. 

keep heat up in, 68. 

the best, 64. 
Broodies, breaking up, 170. 
Brooding : 

four vital points in, 64. 

good, difficult, 63. 

oversight of, 48. 

successful, 227. 

what is it ? 36. 
Bulletins: 

as foundation knowledge, 355. 

College, 277. 

poultry, 277, 283. 
Buying, careful, 366. 

C 
Cabinet, for sprouting oats, 172. 
Cabinet, egg, revolving, 407. 



Capacity, productive, differs, 222. 
Carcasses, must be dry and cool, 

386. 
Care, advance, 60. 
Carve, how to learn to, 360. 
Cat, family, the chicks' worst foe, 136. 
Cat versus rat, 138. 
Catalogues, studying, 54. 
Cats, neighborly, 135. 
Charcoal, 318. 

Charges to experience, heavy, 114. 
Chick: 

average initial cost of, 240. 

developing, appearance of, in egg, 48. 
Chickens : 

hatching in Egypt, 47. 

versus pigs or sheep, 215. 
Chicks : 

baby, shipping, 72. 

cost of production of, 239. 

crowding, 112. 

day-old, cost of, 16. 

early feed for, 72. 

evenly grouped, 66. 

free range, cheaper, 231. 

hen-hatched, feeding, 74. 

in cracker boxes, n. 

marking, 48. 

new hatched, beginning with, 10. 

numher at start, 11. 

older trample younger, n. 

production of day-old, 14. 

should be of same age, n. 

small, watering, 49. 

transferring to brooder, 72. 
Claims, committee on, 262. 
Class, key-point of, 20. 
Classes : 

first choices in, 26. 

of feed, 75. 

order of importance, 23. 

poultry, women in, 276. 

the important, 23. 
Climate and laying, 204. 
Clovers, value of, 87. 
Clutches, doubling up, 40. 
Cockerels, breeding, selection of, 106. 
Combinations, cheap, as high-priced 

"egg foods," 125. 
Common sense, to be conserved, 428. 



INDEX 



441 



Common sense, parting with, 426. 
Competence, and "System" state- 
ments, 425. 
Competency, of counsel, 421. 
Competition : 

national, at Missouri Station, 299. 

North American, 299. 
Competitions, Australian, 290-296 ; 

very valuable, 232. 
Concrete, proportions for, 163. 
Condition : 

counts, 302. 

robust, gives resistant power, 333. 
Confinement, raising breeders in, n. 
Contagion, the great disease spreader, 

106, no. 
Contests, laying, adverse criticism of, 

289. 
Coop: 

brood, general construction of, 174. 

weaning, construction of, 173. 

wire netted, 172, 173. 
Coops : 

furnishing, by dealers, 392. 

too small, 41, 172. 

weaning, for layers, 158. 
Cornell, seeking touch with farmers, 

402. 
Cornell winter course, 270. 
Cost: 

increasing, 223. 

initial, reducing, 240. 

of production, 222. 

productive, varies widely, 224. 

purposed, of your eggs, 237. 

varying, per dozen eggs, 237. 
Cottonseed meal, safe and unsafe, 

88. 
Counsel, the chicks', 66. 
Courses, poultry, summary of, 279. 
Creatures, feelings and rights of, 3. 
Crowding : 

evil of, 202. 

fatal, 71, 72. 

land, 215. 
Cruelty to sitters, 170. 
Crusher, for crockery, 410. 
Culling, weak-kneed, source of loss, 

216. 
Cuts, in judging, 257. 



D 

Dampness : 

encourages fungus, 60. 

fatal effects of, 149. 
Data, full, honest, 207. 
Defects, balancing, 190. 
Defense of lower creatures, 5. 
Deficits from town flocks, 239. 
"Dehorning," by Mendel's law, 195. 
Detraction, causes of, 208, 209. 
Development controlled by tempera- 
ture, 59. 
Diarrhoea, white: 

"an incubator disease," 129. 

avoiding, 52. 

cause of, 73. 

dreaded scourge, 13. 

experiment with, 122. 

from machines, 53. 

incipient in egg, 13. 

incredible losses from, 112. 

investigation of, in Conn., 112. 

preventive treatment for, in. 

virulence of, 122. 
Directions, careful following of, essen- 
tial, 120. 
Disadvantages, adding together, 36. 
Disease : 

in poultry, man the source of, 103. 

of bowels, a matter of temperature, 
130. 

problem, the, 103. 

problem, how to bury, 104. 
Diseases : 

from incomplete digestion, no. 

how induced, 126. 

poultry, in three classes, 52. 

the commonest, 125. 
Disinfectants : 

for head and throat troubles, 127. 

intestinal, 126. 

various ways of using no. 
Disinfection : 

internal, doses for, 126. 

of common sense, 65. 

to ward off contagion, no. 
Dissection : 

a reliable aid, 357. 

partial, for diagnosis, 362. 
Doctor, startled by report, 119. 



442 



INDEX 



Dominance, 195. 

Doors, ventilating, sliding, 109. 

Drains, to prevent seepage, 158. 

Duck, Runner, pen averages, 200. 

Ducklings: 

first needs of, 318. 

Runner, feathering, 318. 
Ducks: 

actual averages, 316. 

easy to raise, 31 ?.. 

"guaranteed" output, 315. 

how to hatch, 317. 

Indian Runner, 315, 320. 

Orpington, Buff, 315. 

Pekin, for market, 313. 

plucking, 394. 

profit from, 316. 

winning, 315. 
Dust : 

for bath, 12. 

tobacco, fifty cents a box, 124. 

E 

Easiest way is best, 98. 
Efficiency: changing to, 413. 

principles of, 417. 

schedule of, 417. 

tabulation for, 42 1 . 
Egg, cold-storage, for incubation, 55. 

cold-storage, the, 55. 

comparative hatching value,. 62. 

contents of, 203. 

fertile, a living animal, 60. 

the ideal, 251. 

water content of, 94. 
Eggs: 

actual variation of, 245. 

Australian test, profit on, 234. 

broken, beware of, 41. 

brown, many grades of, 246. 

candling, 246. 

color, prejudice against, 245. 

cost : for average producer, 238. 
for New York city, 286 
in confinement, 229. 
of production, 234. 

deterioration of, through holding, 33, 

34- 
developing in body, require r 

dummy. | ,. 



farm prices for, 234. 

fertility of, 58. 

for hatching, too old, 58. 

fully graded, 253. 

goose, need moist air, 325. 

goose, sprinkling, 326. 

grades of, 244, 247. 

group producers of, 265. 

hatching, $150, 58. 

held too long, 10. 

high-priced, may chill, 58. 

how many, 16. 

Leghorn, creamy, 27. 

lime content, 400. 

lowering cost of, 2 2g. 

market appearance, size, 252. 

nest, 7. 

never wash for shipment, 390 

normal, grading, 250. 

of good size, 389. 

producer candling, 246. 

producing, cost of, 227, 229. 

protein brings, 84. 

quail, hatching in machines, 348, 349. 

right kind for hatching, S3- 

sales table, 235, 236. 

selling by weight unpopular, 392. 

simple, efficient grading of, 252. 

supply house prices, 329. 

table, advertising, 243. 

testing, 46. 

variations most trying, 247. 
Emphasis, in line breeding, where 

placed, 189. 
Employees, training, 169. 
Enemies: 

mysterious, 113. 

new, how met, 332. 

of poultryman, 35.'. 
Enthusiasm, cleanliness and care pro- 
tect, 133. 
Enthusiasms, must be protected, [31. 
Errors, affect productiveness, 75. 
Essentials in brooding outfit, 224, 225. 
Estimate space, manufacturers', 71. 
Evils, eliminating, 35.5. 
Exceptions, allow no, 188. 
Exercise : 

for animals, value of, 108. 

fur birds, nature's methods of, 108. 



INDEX 



443 



Exercise : 

for fowls, how to encourage, 108. 

for something, 232. 

in brooder, 69. 

its many benefits, 178. 

patent feeders may promote, 108. 
Expenses, keeping down, 218. 
Experience : 

expensive, saving, 37. 

items from, 135. 



Facts, two vital, 94. 
Failure : 

assuring, 34. 

in incubation, reasons for; 56. 
Failures, beginners furnish, 19. 
Faking, defined in Standard, 256. 
Fanciers, honest, 367. 
Fancy, combining with utility, 181. 
Farmer, poultrymen dependent on, 

119. 
Farmers, goose, 326. 
Farming, ostrich, 354. 
Farms : 

egg, branch, 236. 

ostrich, 354. 

poultry raising, some five million, 
285. 
Fatalities, cause of, 202. 
Faults of brooders, 226. 
Feathers : 

and egg production, 397. 

deceptive, 182. 

decorate birds, 397. 

for fishing tackle, 394. 

heavy, reduce laying, 397. 

ideal coat of, 397. 

Indian Runner Duck, 394. 

in millinery, 394. 

marketing, 384. 

nitrogen and lime content of, 400. 

structure of, 393. 

substitute, 394. 
Feed: 

changing, 75. 

cheap, 80. 

chick, poor, 231. 



cooked, 78. 

egg-producing, 80. 

for pigeons, fouled by excreta, 143. 

green, growing for fowls, 98; in 
yards, 96. 

juicy, imperative, 95. 

prepared, advantages of, 231. 

proportions of, proper, 85. 

Sanborn, practice and estimate, 231. 

simple, for ducklings, 318. 

stuffs, high-fiber, 87. 

vitality-producing, 231. 
Feeder : 

automatic, home-made, 167. 

makeshift, 167. 
Feeding : 

excess, 84. 

fowls, three objects thereof, 90. 

right, 75- 
Feeds : 

balancing, 85. 

changing, 84. 

cheap, substituting, 223. 

classifying, 84. 

combining, 82. 

commercial animal, 81. 

foul, lead to disease, 121. 

green, liberal supply needed, 92. 

green, tenderness the first need, 101. 

high protein, table of, 81. 

need close examination, 121. 

too coarse, 87. 

vegetable, 79. 
Fencing : 

consumers of, 307. 

life of, 304. 

rapidity of rusting, 305. 

wire, 304. 
Figures prove, 200. 
Flocks : 

farm, feed cost, 238. 

increasing the, 9. 
Floor : 

cement, cleanest, 165. 

constructing and covering, 165. 

dirt, must be raised, 165. 
Follow-up, 311. 
Food, materials, table of, 91. 
Forecast, of poultry growth, 285. 
Foreknowledge a key, 113. 



444 



INDEX 



Foresight, three essentials of, 41. 
Forethought, necessity of, 115. 
Foundation : 

cement, 164. 

cinder and concrete, 163. 
Fountains, for milk, need special 

cleansing, 122. 
Fowls, domestic, valuation basis, 401. 

company of, fascinating, 33. 

draw for private custom, 357. 

drawing, 358-360. 

health, selection for, 104. 

in nature, 84. 

many, managing, 202. 

occupation and recreation for, 98. 

older, molt more slowly, 400. 

on range, independent, 92. 

winter sleeping rooms for, 157. 
Freighting costly, 84. 
Friends, of poultryman, 352. 
Fruit, wasting, good poultry feed, 101. 
Fungi, in dusty, musty straws, grains, 
117. 

G 

Game, domestic, 338. 

Gapes, practical general treatment, 1 1 1 . 

Geese : 

capacity, averages, cost to keep, 322. 

Embden, 328. 

forming habits of, 321. 

mating, 324. 

white Chinese, 328. 
Germs, good and evil, 430. 
Glass : 

radiates heat, 163. 

too much, 68. 
Goose : 

egg product, increasing, 326. 

incubating, the, 326. 
Goslings : 

first handling of, 325. 

natural feed for, 325. 
Grain, burying, 232. 
Grains, buy sound only, 119. 
Ground, foul, sweeten at once by 

spading, 122. 
Grouse : 

disappearing, 350. 

ruffed, once a pest, 345. 



Guide, the only, 375. 
Guinea, Pearl, 338, 342. 

weight of, 342. 
Guineas: 

as game, 344. 

as mothers, 343. 

demand for, 343. 

social, 342. 

young, in New York market, 344. 

H 

Habit, the supply, 405. 
Habits, of hens, study, 44. 
Handling : 

care in, 384. 

on range, 10. 

simplifying, 390. 
Hatch, machine, successful, 54. 
Hatcheries, central, 239. 
Hatches, early, 39. 
Health : 

and activity, 177. 

of poultry, waning, 112. 
Heat: 

glass radiates, 163. 

in brooder, controlling, 69. 
Hen: 

idle, maintaining, 203. 

record, Oregon College, 205. 

setting the, 34. 

sitting, the fierce, 34. 

the average, 228. 
Hens: 

better than pullets, 180. 

common, cost, 14. 

do not average, 203. 

farm average, usual income, 239. 

fighting, good mothers, 39. 

nervous, not good sitters, 38. 

non-laying, 70. 

pure-bred, cost of, 16. 

starting with, 14. 

three, Cornell record, 204. 

too fat, 249. 

with broods, buying, 12. 
Hopper : 

Cornell rat proof, 170. 

feed, compartment, 169. 
Hoppers, rat proof, necessary, 140. 



INDEX 



445 



House : 

adapted Tolman, W. Va., 152. 

bill of materials for, 155. 

"Clark," semi-monitor, 161. 

open front, 147. 

permanent, good type of, 163. 

poultry satisfactory type of, 147. 

semi-monitor, sunny, 163. 

shed, remodeling, 161. 

shelter for, 158. 

supply, development of, 403. 

the cheapest form, 161. 

warmer than shed roof, 161. 

Warren "model," 159. 

wire front, 164. 
Houses : 

fault of shed roof, 156. 

muslin front, 158. 

New Jersey Station, 163. 

piano box, 174. 

portable, 147, 148, 15°- 

poultry, Bulletin of, 152. 
Hover, favorite type of, 65. 
Hovers, satisfactory, 70. 
Hulls, 87. 

Hygrometer, for success, 61. 
Hygrometers, 407. 

I 

Ideal, for egg shape, 251. 
Ideas, too large, 207. 
Imprisonment, for life, 9. 
Inclosure, movable, 173. 
Incubation : 

a suspended process, 60. 

first requisite for, 51. 

time required for, 45. 
Incubator : 

beginning with, 18, 51. 

too cheap, don't buy, 37. 

"will bear watching," 130. 
Industries, dovetailing, 351. 
Inefficiency : 

household, 416. 

lesson in, 413. 

traces to man, 412. 
Infection, and air passages of birds, 

118. 
Injuries, internal, 248, 249. 



Investments : 

early, 18. 

losing, 215. 
Iron, tincture of, good canker medi- 
cine, 127. 



Jail, swinging, for sitters, 170. 
Judges, instructions to, 257. 
Judgment, acquiring, 182. 



Kitten : 

beware of training, to kill chicks, 

138. 
hunting instinct can be limited, 
138. 
Knowledge, passing it on, 156. 



Law : 

for breeds, 22. 

for poultry, the sum of, 22. 

Mendel's, 192. 

of animal life, 178. 
Layer : 

extra, 203, 205. 

good, must be good eater, 203. 
Layers : 

best, in competitions, 30. 

daytime housing of, 109. 

superior, 26. 

two-hundred-egg, 238. 
Leghorns, 27. 

Brown, single-mating, 29. 

most useful specimens of, 30. 

Rose Comb Brown, two types of, 29. 

size of eggs, 27. 

white, as layers, 293. 

white, at Storrs, 301. 
Libraries, poultry, for New Jersey, 276. 
Lice: 

chick, warding off, 48. 

fight against, unceasing, 130. 

killing by machinery, 409. 

on brooder chicks, 74. 
Life, making tolerable, 85. 
Like, producing unlike, 197. 
Lime, for disinfection, no. 



446 



INDEX 



Line-breeding, value of, rgi. 

Lion, in beginner's way, 34. 
Literature on poultry, 355. 
Litter: 

its provision a problem, 107. 

material, matting together, 107. 
Liver, minced, for layers, 233. 
Location : a small factor, 219. 

everything, 218. 
Lore, goose, 330. 
Loss: 

causes for, finding, 356. 

important cause of, 65. 

nineteen per cent, 297. 

of fowls, percentages of, 105. 
Losses : 

comparative, between large and small 
animals, 75. 

mysterious, of chicks, 113. 

none in raising, 217. 

of fowls, in competitive test, 105. 

poultry, sheep, pigs, 215. 
Luck : 

good, 5. 

to the Beginner, 430. 
Lungs, the chick's, 69, 70. 
Lure, for Beginners, 379. 



M 

Machines: 

all-around good, (>i . 

hot air vs. hot water, 54. 
Man, his best care of himself, 104. 
Markers, poultry, 409. 
Mash, Australian, for layers, 232. 
Mating : 

double, a hoodoo, 191. 

for customers, 190. 

rules must be learned, 191. 
Maturity: 

average, 117. 

laying, index of, 184. 
Measure, unit of, 185. 
Meat: 

meals, 88. 

producing. 25. 
Medicines: 

cure through disinfecting, 1 10. 

poultry, as special supplies, 405. 



Mediterraneans, 26. 
Medium, a good selling, 370. 
Men, business and poultry, 241. 
Method, feeding, Sanborn, 72, 73. 
Methods : 

business-like, 216. 

demonstrated, 356. 

of marketing, 357. 

of shipment, 381. 

os. principles, 113. 
Mice: 

annual estimated damage of, 146. 

enemies of, 145. 

plague of, demands destruction of 
millions, 145. 
Middleman, profits of, 244. 
Milk, bacterial, passed as good, 121. 
Mill : 

high fiber, 87. 

stuffs, quality for mashes, 121. 
Miller, poultryman dependent on, 1 10. 
Mills, visiting, good training, 120. 
Minorcas, 27. 

Mites, spraying to prevent, 128. 
Mold, in mows and slacks, 118. 
Molds, do not yield to treatment 

easily, 117. 
Molters, late, best layers, 398. 
Molting, Cornell stu lies in, 397. 
Molts, repeated, 398. 
Money : 

in backyard fowls, 420. 

saving, 68, 1 72. 
Money making, from Runner Ducks, 

316. 
Mortality, great cause of, 21)7. 
Mouse, the plague, a micro/ its, 145. 
Mustards, curled, as green feed, 98. 

N 

Nest, for goose eggs, [6. 
Nest trap: 

faults of, 206. 

surprises of, 203. 
Nests : 

drt ached, lighter, 40. 

in series, 40. 

materials for, 4 |. 

placed vertically, 168. 



INDEX 



447 



Nests : 

should be comfortable and inviting, 6. 

under droppings platform, 15.3. 

upright series of, 168. 
Netting : 

galvanizing processes, 308. 

must be stretched firmly, 166. 

wire, advantages of, 309, 311. 
Non-sitters, 38. 
Normal, what is? 115. 
Normality the true basis of expecta- 
tion, 116. 

O 

Oats: 

burying for green feed, 97. 

"Processed," 237. 

sprouted, and success, 240. 
Observation leads to interest, 4. 
Onions : 

cheap green feed, 100. 

may taint eggs, 100. 
Orchards, for poultry, 278. 
Orders, important supplies, should be 

early, 406. 
Organs : 

egg, result of stimulation upon, 362. 

internal, crowded, 362. 
Orpingtons : 

Black, in Missouri, 302. 

in 1095, 24. 

in 191 1, 24. 

rise of, 23. 
Ostriches : 

as economic birds, 354. 

produce of, 354. 
Outgo, months of, 16. 



Package, poultry, Cornell, 
Packages : 

marking, 388. 

standard, 389. 
Paint, lice: 

applying to roosts, 128. 

home-made, 128. 
Palatability, 78. 
Panels : 

netting, 166. 

wire, handy, 166, 167, 



Partridges, English, prices of, 346. 
Pears, sugar content of, 94. 
People, the, pay, 430. 
Perfection, a dream, 190. 
Periodicals, poultry, many, 283. 
Pestilence through lack of knowledge 

of one fact, 113. 
Pheasants, introducing, 350, 351. 
Picking, dry, 386. 
Pigweed, 101. 
Pinfeathers, black, 25. 
Plague : 

cost thousands of dollars, 140. 

of mice, in Nevada, 144. 
Plagues, of mice, long known, 143. 
Plucking injures laying and fertility, 

396. 
Plumping, 384. 
Points : 

good and bad, 12. 

vital, in choosing breed, 30. 
Poisons : 

for rodents, most approved, 142. 

rat, bacterial forms of, 140. 
Potashes to help fruit trees, 102. 
Potatoes, chopped, good feed, 95. 
Poultry : 

commercial, 24. 

cooling for shipment, 384. 

does it pay? 211, 213. 

house, cloth front, desirable, 109. 

houses, warming artificially, 109. 

icing, 384. 

not paying, why ? 204. 

packing, 384. 

per cent on farms, 227. 

scalding, 386. 

state aid for, 281. 

with fruit, 22, 277. 
Poultryman, city, lacks much common 

knowledge, 119. 
Poults, turkey, weak, 336. 
Premise, a wrong, 79. 
Prevention: 

agencies for, 106. 

means "good luck," 136. 

the great reliance, 128. 
Price, more, small quantities, 125. 
Price current, 383. 
Prices, geese and eggs, 329. 



44 8 



INDEX 



Principles, efficiency, apply first, 413. 
Privilege, of water, for ducklings, 310. 
Prize, competition, held by Rose Comb 

Brown Leghorns, 29. 
Prizes, competitive, won by White 

Leghorns, 30. 
Production, winter, average, 223. 

egg, relation to food and weight, 398. 

group, rules for, 265. 
Products, marketing, 357. 
Profit : 

and consumption, 292. 

clear, $4.17 per layer, 227. 
Profits, best come whence ? 227. 
Progress, in breeding, 206. 
Protein : 

comparative, in green and dry feeds, 
94. 

costly, 82. 

values, 90. 
Public, preying upon, 367. 
Pullet : 

a good, 177. 

maturing, period of, 18. 
Pullets : 

age of laying maturity, 180. 

early-laying, 179. 



Quail : 

as poultry, 344. 

at Storrs Experiment Station, 346. 

breeding in confinement, 346, 348. 

brooding artificially, 34S. 

European, establishing here, 349. 

importations of, 347. 

scarcity, causes for, 346. 

vanishing, 346. 

young, feed for, 348. 
Quality, high average, 208. 



Rat: 

carries bubonic plague, 138. 
chief sources of feed, 140. 
deal with, on suspicion, 139. 
fears change and upset, 139. 
grave necessity for extermination of, 

139- 
man's duel with, 136. 



Rate, death, chick, 240. 
Ration, the proper, 76. 
Rat-proofing buildings, 139. 
Rats: 

harbors for, 157. 

may insure loss, 142. 
Records : 

egg, 30. 

of outgoes only, unfair, 208. 
Regulators : 

average, good, 61. 

defective, 407. 
Remedies, household, for poultry, 124. 
Removal, early, from machine, 65. 
Re-setting hens, 46. 
Rest: 

alighting, 169. 

for sitters, 171. 
Returns, best average, in New Eng- 
land, 128. 
Risks and the Beginner, 267. 
Roofing, patent, liked, 159. 
Room, chicks dying to make, 71. 
"Rots," for table delicacies, 247. 
Roughage, 87. 

Ruggedness, best surety against dis- 
ease, 11. 
Rule, universal, for detail work, 218. 
Runners, Indian, cheaply raised, 223. 

laying record of, 397. 



Sacs, air, reach all parts of body, 118. 
Schools, correspondence, 267. 
Scraps, table, value of, 77, 7S. 
Seclusion, 39. 

Seepage, from barnyard, poisonous, 121. 
Selection : 

by appearance, 206. 

rigid, for success, 210. 
Shade, dense, fatal, 49. 
Shape, the determiner of breed, 20. 
Shell : 

egg, texture variations, 250. 
Shells, egg, poor, mean loss, 249. 
Shelter : 

cheap 'A,' 161. 

for chicks, 69. 

necessary, 11. 



INDEX 



449 



Shipment, preparing for, 381. 
Shipments, for holidays, 390. 
Shippers, where failing, 388. 
Shipping, on commission, 383. 
Sitters : 

condition of, 35. 

condition of, important, 42. 

daily needs of, 45. 

good and poor, 35. 

handling, 43. 

keep quiet, 42. 

shelter for, 39. 

shelter for, movable, 40. 

with Asiatic blood, 35. 
Size, excessive, in turkeys, a bar, 

334- 
Soils, made bare by ranging, 98. 

unfavorable for poultry, commonly 
used, 149. 
Space : 

due each hen, 159. 

for roosting room only, 161. 
Spot, weak, in Systems, 427. 
Squirrel, carries deadly plague, 138. 
Squirrels, ground, destroy millions' 

worth, 142. 
Standard : 

needed in utility breeding, 30. 

of perfection, breeding without, 367. 
Standards, separate breed, 30. 
Start, getting a, 364. 
Station, testing, Cornell, 282. 
Stations, Experiment, interest in poul- 
try, 152. 
Stock, fancy, for Beginner, 364. 
Strain, line-bred, 190. 
Strains : 

crossing, 195. 

differences in, 294. 
Struggle, for life, 66. 
Students, Cornell, development of, 

272. 
Supplies : 

choice in, 405. 

model, Cornell, 403. 

modern, 403. 

second hand, 18. 
Supply and demand, 380. 
Sympathy, necessary, dealing with 
living things, 2. 
2G 



System, chain, of egg farms, 226. 

one requirement of, 426. 

what may it teach? 115. 
"Systems" and system, 422. 
Systems, natural, 45. 



Table, Cornell grading, for eggs, 244. 

Temperature, low, delays hatch, 59. 

Temperatures, fatal changes in, 60. 

Tester, the easiest, 47. 

Testers, egg, cheap and otherwise, 408. 

Testing, just how, 47. 

Tests : 

practical, 232. 

public, average laying in, 296. 
Thrift, proportioned to balance of feeds, 

Q3- 
Trade, fanciers', exigencies of, 56. 
Trees, fruit, in poultry yards, 101, 102. 

need all fertilizing elements, 102. 

wiring off, in poultry yards, 101. 
Truth, a basic, 425. 
Turkey, modern variety of, 337. 
Turkeys : 

laying capacity of, 336. 

Red, Bourbon, 337. 

setting, 336. 

standard weights of, 334. 

varieties of, 334. 

U 

Unit, breeding, for geese, 328. 
Utility, 369. 
vs. fancy, 24. 



Value, fowl, greatest increase due to 

feathers, 401. 
Values : 

fictitious, 380. 

of records, 208. 
Varieties, of Leghorns identical, in 
theory, 27. 

standard, number of, 20. 
Vegetables, extra high protein, 87. 
Vent, affections of, 127. 



45° 



INDEX 



Ventilation : 

a crucial point, 61. 

diffused, overhead, ioo. 

increasing, 65, 66. 

in fireless brooder, 7 1 . 

summer doors for, 155. 
Vermin : 

inviting raids of, 133. 

ravages of, 131. 

imperative, 297. 

W 

Wall, loose stone, not rat proof. 164. 
Warmth, brooding, 60. 
Water : 

in vegetables, table showing, 93. 

lack of, poultryman cannot afford, 95 
Way. right, only one? 220. 
Weather, farmer dependent on, 119. 
Weeds, as green feed, 100. 
Wheats, high in protein, 87. 
Wire : 

corrosion of, 303. 

practical gauges, 308. 



Women : 

and poultry, 264, 265. 

percentage of, interested, 284. 
Work, experimental, difficulties of, 116. 

hard, necessary, 220. 

practice, value of, 277. 

saving, 68. 

waste of, 412. 
Worms : 

many species of, in fowls, 126. 

quickest effective treatment, 127. 

turpentine remedy for, 126. 
Wyandotte, Columbian, admission of, 

23- 

tabulated symposium on, 230. 

the ideal, 182. 

the, re-shaping, 182. 



Yard, surrounding house, 96. 
Yards : 

movable, from adjustable panels, 167. 

poultry, how to sweeten, 102. 
Yields of eggs, average, 116. 



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F. W. Card's Bush Fruits 

On the Care of Live-stock 

Nelson S. Mayo's The I diseases of Animals 
W. II. Jordan's The Feeding of Animals 
I. P. Roberts' The Horse 
M. W. Harper's Breaking and Training o( IK 
George C. Watson's Farm Poultry 

On Dairy Work, Farm Chemistry, etc. 
Henry II. Wing's Milk and lis Products 
1. G. Lipman's Bacteria and Country 1 ife 

On Economics and Organization 

I. P. Roberts' The Farmer's Business Handbook 
George T. Fairchild's Rural Wealth an 1 Welfare 

II. N. Ogden's Rural Hygiene 

|. i ireen's 1 aw tor the American Farmer 



5i 5° 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

Publishers 64-66 Fifth Avenue New York 



Cyclopedia of American Agriculture 

Edited by L. H. BAILEY 



Director of the College of Agriculture and Professor of Rural Economy, 
Cornell University.. 

With ioo full-page plates and more than 2000 illustrations 
in the text; jour volumes; the set, $20.00 net; half morocco, 
$32.00 net; carriage extra 

Volume I — Farms Volume III — Animal 

Volume II — Crops Volume IV — The Farm and the Community 

"Indispensable to public and reference libraries . . . readily comprehensible to 
any person of average education." — The Nation. 

"The completest existing thesaurus of up-to-date facts and opinions on modern 
agricultural methods. It is safe to say that many years must pass before it can 
be surpassed in comprehensiveness, accuracy, practical value, and mechanical 
excellence. It ought to be in every library in the country." — Record-Herald t 
Chicago. 

Cyclopedia of American Horticulture 

Edited by L. H. BAILEY 

With over 2800 original engravings ; four volumes; the set, 
$20.00 net; half morocco, $32.00 net; carriage extra 

"This really monumental performance will take rank as a standard in its class. 
Illustrations and text are admirable. . . . Our own conviction is that while the 
future may bring forth amplified editions of the work, it will probably never be 
Superseded. Recognizing its importance, the publishers have given it faultless 
form. The typography leaves nothing to be desired, the paper is calculated to 
stand wear and tear, and the work is at once handsomely and attractively 
bound." — New York Daily Tribune. 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

Publishers 64-66 Fifth Avenue New York 



SEP 19 1912 



w* %"il 



B^^^HI^B 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



002 849 621 



